True Memories: Flurry of the Dancing Flames
by HeWhoUpdatesLikeATurtle
Summary: Part of series with the Organization XIII members regaining their true selves. Naruto X KH2. Axel X Sakura. Notice: Prologue will remain the same but the story will be changed entirely due to direction main story is going.
1. Prologue

True Memories: Flurry of the Dancing Flames Prologue

Disclaimer: I neither own Naruto, who is copyrighted by Masashi Kishimoto, or Kingdom Hearts, which is copyrighted by Square Enix and Disney.

'_Dark…so dark…am I going to die?'_

In the middle of darkness, Axel floated. Eyes closed and thoughts drifting as how he spent his life as a Nobody, seeking his true self and his dear old friend, Roxas.

'_Haaaah…I only regret not having seen Roxas…one last time. At least…the kid is safe.'_

In the distance of Axel's Mind's eye, he saw a light.

'_Huh? Wha…What is this?'_

The light grew larger and began to engulf him.

'_So…warm…I guess this is where I finally die…'_

"I'm afraid this is not your place to die, Axel"

Axel's eyes flew open as soon as he heard the voice only to have them shut again to block out the bright light. The voice began to chuckle.

"You need not worry, He of the Flurry of Dancing Flames. Open your eyes and accept the light."

Axel was quite unsure what was going on but slowly opened them anyway, his eyes slowly adjusting themselves. The first thing his eyes saw was a woman standing over him with a smile like that of angels.

"Feeling better, Axel?"

"Yeah…I guess…where the heck am I though?"

Axel looked at the surrounding area. It was nothing like Castle Oblivion or like The World That Never Was. As far as the eye can see, there were stars that shone brightly with Axel and the woman standing on a platform that seemed to be made up of the stars around them. Floating a short distance away from Axel was a magnificent castle. This particular castle had one insignia that stood out the most: a heart with a keyhole in the middle. Axel could only stare in awe. The woman next to him giggled.

"This, Axel, is Kingdom Hearts."

Axel immediately turned his head away from the sight and focused his vision on the woman before him, looking more surprised than he was just a few seconds ago. The woman giggled again.

"I can see why you're confused but believe me, this is Kingdom Hearts. If you want proof, just follow me."

The woman then walked towards the edge of the platform.

"Whoa! Wait a minute! I thought you were going to show me proof, not just jump off!"

Just as Axel said this, stars around them immediately zoomed under the woman's feet to form a similar platform, which was connected to the first. As she walked, the platform slowly began to become a path towards the castle. Axel, once again, found himself awe-struck. The woman turned towards him, smiling.

"Come one, silly. I said I was going to show you proof and it's at the castle."

Axel continued staring for a minute before deciding that he was getting nowhere just sitting and staring and followed her. After some time of traveling, Axel pondering about the credibility of this area being Kingdom Hearts and the girl humming happily, they stopped at the castle's gates. The girl turned towards him.

"I should probably warn you. Don't ever open the doors in this castle unless it has your name on it."

Axel just looked confused.

"Doors? What're you talking about?"

The woman shoved open the doors, which revealed an endless hall filled with doors. As the woman said, each door had a name on it. To his right though, one door drew his attention, the door that would reveal to him his true self and memories. The woman walked towards it with Axel following behind her, eyes focused on the door.

"This can't be possible…you mean…?

The woman nodded her head, already knowing the question and the answer to the question. Axel turned back towards the door, still looking at it with disbelief.

'_I can actually become…normal?'_

The thought began to echo in his head repeating it over and over. The thought finally convinced him to go and open the door, the door that will make him whole. As he opened it, another bright light flashed be fore his eyes. Memories then began to bombard his mind, revealing who he was and where he belonged.

'_I remember…my name…my true name was…'_

_RIINNNNGGG-RIINNNNNGGGG!_


	2. Chapter 1

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 1

Disclamer: I do not own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts 2.

_RIINNNNGGG-RIINNNNNGGGG!_

_RIINNNNGGG-RIINNNNNGGGG!_

_RIINNNNGGG-RII—_SMASH!

"Uuuuuuugghhh…..stupid clock with its stupid alarm…"

With that, a 12-year old boy flopped out of his bed, hitting the floor with a dull thud and stayed there for a good 10 minutes until a thought came to his head.

'I have a feeling something important was supposed to come up today but what?'

The boy repositioned himself by sitting up and crossing his legs to allow him to think more clearly. Minutes passed by until…..

"HOLY CRAP! I'M GONNA BE LATE FOR CLASS!"

The boy then blazed across his small apartment into the bathroom, all the while leaving a small trail of fire. Furiously, he brushed his teeth and then spiked up his fiery red hair. Turquoise eyes looked critically at his reflection until giving a grin of satisfaction. With that, he proceeded to change into a black shirt with the Kanji of "Fire" on the back and a pair of black shorts that reached his knees.

After changing, he stopped to look at a picture of his family. Everyone looked so happy in that picture, the fiery haired boy grinning and giving out the 'V' sign. His father behind him with his arm around his mother's shoulders, looking all the world the perfect family. Who would've thought that only a few days later after that picture was taken, a distant older cousin of his would go and cause a massacre that would live in infamy? The fiery haired boy gave a sigh.

'Well, what's past is past, I guess. Gotta watch out for my cuz' anyways.' That was until another thought crept into his mind.

"DAMMIT, I'M GONNA BE LATE!"

With that thought, he secured his shuriken holster and blazed out of his apartment to the Ninja Academy.

Author's Note: Woot, only one review...if anything, I would appreciate it if more people would review in case anyone is confused or just to tell me that it's good or bad.


	3. Chapter 2

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts 2.

If we look back for a moment, we left our fiery haired 12-year old running to the Ninja Academy. Why? Because the boy smashed his alarm clock for being loud and annoying, which was a crime…at least to him it was. Not only that, he overslept the alarm despite waking himself up enough to actually do the aforementioned action. He now only had 5 minutes to reach the academy and into the classroom.

"AAAGGGHHH! GANG-WAY!" yelled the boy.

Remember when he ran to the bathroom in the last chapter? Well, instead of that small trail-blaze, it's now flaming pillars of fire as he ran. This in turn gave the villagers incentive to get the hell out of his way, lest they be trampled and brunt to a crisp.

As the fiery haired boy ran, he noticed that he was running alongside 2 other girls, one with blonde hair and the other with pink hair. He grinned and yelled out his greeting because of their combined trampling blocking out small talk.

"Yo, Sakura, Ino! Did you guys wake up late too?" Said girls turned their attention towards him, Ino replying first.

"No! I'm trying to get to the academy first but Forehead girl here had to bother me!"

This caused Sakura to start fuming and start another glaring contest.

"What was that, Ino-Pig?"

The fiery haired boy could only laugh at their antics. The boy knew the 2 girls long enough to know that they were once friends before something came up and broke them apart. The cause? His beloved cousin, Sasuke Uchiha. Of course, almost everyone of the Uchiha clan was…how do you say…drop-dead gorgeous, the boy being no slouch himself but let's just say Sasuke had a…allure…to him that attracted all the girls to him. Thus, causing the formation of the "Sasuke Uchiha Fan-Club." The boy had a fan-club of his own, albeit much smaller when compared to his cousin's.

'Heh heh, who needs enemies when ya got fan-girls like this, eh cuz'?" As he was thinking this, the academy came into view of the 3 man…ahem, 1 man and 2 girl stampede.

'Better put the fire out. Don't want what happened last time to happen again.' What happened last time you may ask…let's just say it was fortunate that there was a Konoha ninja capable of Water-jutsus and that over the years, the boy became more capable of controlling his 'unique power.' With that, the boy skidded like a racecar going too fast into a stop just before he reached the academy doors. Ino and Sakura, not having to worry about torching the building just continued running past him and through the doors. The boy could only stare.

'Must be good to have a one tracked mind…' And how unfortunate for the bell to ring at that exact moment.

_RIIIIIINNNNGGGGG!_

"CRAP!" And with that, the fiery haired boy ran after the girls to the classroom.

Author's Note: Ok, 2 reviews...that's a start. I say 2 because I deleted this one story first which had 1 review because I had to change the prologue, in case anyone got confused. Comments? Thoughts? I'm all ears.


	4. Chapter 3

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 3

Author's Note: To those who have read my story (soon to be stories), please forgive my long absence. My computer has been experiencing some internet problems but it has been fixed. Also, there will be a questionaire at the end concerning my writings and stories. Thank you.

""SAFE!"

With that, the bell rang and the fiery haired boy gave a triumphant laugh and did a victory jig.

"Ha! In your face, Father Time! I Rule and you drool! Yeah baby!"

At this point, everyone, students and Iruka alike, was looking at the boy like he just ingested a whole freaking boat full of sugar. When the boy realized this, he sheepishly laughed.

"Eh heh heh heh, sorry……I was kind of running late and…yeah…" Continuous staring ensues.

"I'll just go to my seat now Iruka-sensei."

"I just hope you're not late to your team meetings, Ren. Punctuality is important to being a ninja too."

"10-4, Iruka-sensei." Ren replied good-naturedly. This earned chuckles and giggles all around except from Sasuke. Who wouldn't expect that from Konoha's resident Prince of Ice? Ren then turned to go find a seat way in the back, due to lack of seats in the front. Iruka then began speaking.

"Since all of you have graduated, you're all now Genin ninja and are eligible to accept missions. But since all of you are beginners, all of you will be separated into a 3-man team except for one team due to the odd number of students. All of the teams will also be assigned a Jonin to guide and instruct them in the ways of the ninja. Also, we have separated the teams to balance everyone's strengths and weaknesses."

This in turn got Iruka a very loud cry of indignation from the students, which surprisingly broke no windows. Various thoughts ran across some young ninjas' minds, let's take a gander, shall we?

'How troublesome…' Shikamaru lazily thought.

'Oh, I hope I'm on Naruto's team.' Hinata shyly thought, all the while fidgeting with her fingers the way she does whenever she is shy.

'I don't care who I'm with as long as it's Sakura…except Sasuke. I hate Sasuke!' Naruto thought.

'Hmmm…sounds like 2 people too many…' Was Sasuke's arrogant thought.

As for the rest of the female population, they all had one thought coming across their minds, including Sakura and Ino.

'I better be on Sasuke's team!'

Of course, in Sakura's mind there's a "Chyah!" at the end but that can wait. Iruka began to read off the teams. Things got interesting when Team 7 was called.

"Team 7 shall consist of Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno…"

"ALRIGHT!" Naruto yelled out triumphantly.

"Oh man…" Sakura mumbled.

"…Sasuke Uchiha…"

"ALRIGHT!" Was Sakura's triumphant yell. Funny how some things turn out the same

"Oh man…" Naruto and Sakura must be on some mental wave length or something, eh?

"And Ren Uchiha." Now all of the girls were groaning in disappointment. Now both bachelors were out of their reach. Ren could only grin at his luck.

'Alright, I get to be on the same team as my cuz' and favorite pink-haired girl.' Ren thought.

'Scratch that…3 people too many…' Sasuke thought.

'Oh…I'm not on Naruto's team…' Was Hinata's sad thought. Will Hinata ever be able to profess her love to our favorite maverick ninja? Speaking of, Naruto chose this time to voice…or rather yell his thoughts.

"Iruka-sensei! Why does an outstanding ninja like me, end up with someone like Sasuke?" Iruka replied to this outburst calmly.

"As I said before, the teams are based upon balancing everyone's strengths and weaknesses. Sasuke got the top grades while you got the worst grades."

"Just don't drag me down, dope." Was Sasuke's taunt towards Naruto. It then turned into an argument which ended with Sakura bashing Naruto on the head and Ren laughing his head off. Iruka could only let out a sigh which then turned to a small grin.

'Ah, they'll work it out.' Iruka thought with hope.

"Well, that's about it for now. You'll all be introduced to your Jonin teachers later in the afternoon so why don't you all go out for a small break until then?"

The students didn't need to be told twice so they exited to go do whatever they do on their breaks.

Questionaire: For a long time now, I've had some drafts on how the other members of the Organization XIII members will come into the Naruto story (mind that the stories will be seperate entities). But I've also taken a look at the length of my recent writings and noticed how short they are. In the form of a review or an e-mail, please answer the 2 questions.

1. Should I write moe to get more of the story-line accomplished and to allow more satisfied reading?

And...

2. Who should be introduced next? Xigbar, Xaldin, Vexen, Lexaeus, Zexion, Saix, Demyx, Luxord, Marluxia, Larxene, Roxas, or Xemnas? Depending on who is chosen, I might have another questionaire concerning on how some characters are introduced into the story on the next update (Namely, Xaldin, Vexen, Lexaeus, Saix, Demyx, Roxas, or Xemnas). Thank you.


	5. Chapter 4

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts II. Also I apologize for not doing the disclaimer in the last chapter.

With now an ample amount of free time to do as they please, most of the students spent it with friends or meeting with their assigned team members to break the ice. This is exactly what Ren was trying to do. Break the ice that was his cousin, Sasuke Uchiha, the Supreme, Undaunted Prince of Ice.

"Hey cuz'! Wait up!" Sasuke only gave his estranged cousin a brief glance before continuing to walk away. Ren caught up with him after jogging a couple of feet.

"Geez dude, the least you could do is say hi or something…" Ren said with a mock pout on his face.

"……whatever."

"Ah well, say, ya feel like eating together? After all, cousins got to stick together, don'tcha know?"

"..." Was Sasuke's ever so eloquent reply.

"Alrighty then! This looks like a nice spot, ne?" Both had stopped near a one of many windows that had a long roofs right below them to allow any ninja to walk along them. Thus, both began eating, with Sasuke remaining ever so silent and Ren talking about the day and such.

Now, Naruto on the other hand was still a bit grouchy about being teamed up with his ultimate nemesis.

'Argh! This so totally sucks! There has to be some good side to this!' Was Naruto's train of thought until he hit upon an idea.

'I know! Heh heh heh…this will be so great!' And with that, Naruto snuck away to put his Devious, Masterful plan in action.

It was around this time, with Sasuke and Ren, that Ren happened to spy Sakura sitting alone on a bench some distance away.

'Huh. She's usually a lot more energetic. Wonder what's up?' Ren thought. Ren then turned to his cousin.

"Hey cuz', something sort of came up, mind if I leave you alone for a bit?" Ren asked with a wide grin.

"Be my guest…" Sasuke replied.

"Alright, see ya later then!" With that Ren leaped away, jumping from roof to roof, heading for Sakura's location. How unfortunate for unbeknownst to them, Naruto was hiding inside the building they were eating upon with a rope.

'Heh heh, Sasuke always lets his guard down while eating.' With this confidence in mind, Naruto threw the rope and had ensnared Sasuke, who unfortunately did let his guard down while eating. You'd think the Uchihas' would have more dignity than that, eh?

"HEY! WHO THE…NARUTO!!!"

"KEEP IT DOWN, IDIOT!!"

_BAM CRASH BOOM_

Silence ensued once the noise died down. After a few more minutes, Sasuke walked out with a bored expression on his face with only one thing to say.

"Fool."

(A/N: Of course, anyone that has read the series will know who it really is)

By this time, Ren was ready to scare the living daylights out of Sakura by jumping out from the tree just above Sakura.

'Ready…Steady…GO!!!' Ren suddenly jumped out of the tree landing in front of Sakura while at the same time yelling…

"BOO!!!" Mind you, his original intention was to scare the living daylights out of her. Unfortunately, she did more than that. First she shrieked like a wild banshee and then she fainted. Ren could only stare in shock and in worry.

"Oh crap…that wasn't supposed to happen. Hey hey, wake up, Sakura. Ya know, I wasn't that scary. This is like…grade-school stuff, ya know. Come on, wake up." Ren began to shake her unconscious form which elicited a groan from Sakura. Ren gave a sigh of relief.

'Geez, I thought I killed her for a sec.' Sakura then slowly opened her eyes to the sight of Ren standing over her with a worried expression.

"Hey, you ok?" Ren asked.

Sakura only had one reply for Ren. A knock-out punch that would put the greatest boxer to shame. Of course, the force was so great that it gave Ren extra spin and made him crash into the tree across from her. At this point, Ren had swirly eyes.

"Ooookiiiiieeee dooookkkiiiiieeeee…Iiiii guessss yoooouuu'rrreee fiiiinnnneee……"

"What the heck was that for, Ren!? You almost gave me a heart attack!" Was Sakura's angry demand. Ren tried to make the world stop spinning by shaking his head from side to side a little. It helped with the world spinning but not the pain. Despite all of this, he gave a lop-sided grin and replied.

"Well, ya know, I was with Sasuke for a bite to eat when I spied with my little eye a most depressed looking Cherry Blossom. Besides, all Cherry Blossoms look most beautiful when they're happy, right?"

This caused Sakura to blush a little.

'Wait a minute…why am I blushing? The only person I would want to hear that from is Sasuke…'

"Well, that's part of my reason anyway." Ren continued and hoisted himself up and sat next to Sakura on the bench.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was hidden in the same tree that Ren had just hidden on and was listening in on their conversation. If anything, he looked quite suspicious and almost down-right angry.

'What the heck is that red porcupine-head doing talking to Sakura like that!? She never lets me within 10 feet of her and yet he gets the nerve to sit next to her on a bench!! This is so unfair!!!' Sasuke thought.

But wait a minute, was not Sasuke hailed as the Prince of Ice? What need does he have of the love of a simple, yet cute, girl like Sakura? Has the world finally ended? ARE WE ALL DOOMED TO DISASTER!?!? The answer……Gods no. If you really want to know what happened to Sasuke, you can find him bound and gagged in the room Naruto dragged him into. Oh well, life goes on.

"I've actually been meaning to talk to you about Sasuke and Naruto, Sakura." Ren said. This caught both Sakura's and "Sasuke's" attention.

"What do you actually think about those two? Don't get me wrong, I'm just curious is all." Ren said.

'Yeah right, kiddo. Let's face it, that Sasuke is a jerk and doesn't deserve a chick like Sakura. And I don't even care if he really was my cousin in my original life.' Said a voice within Ren's head.

'Shut it, Axel. You know we're not exactly any better of than him.' Ren replied hotly. If one were to look back, you would remember that Axel was Ren's Nobody who had gained his true identity after reaching Kingdom Hearts. Along with gaining and reliving his life, his new persona inherited his powers along with the hidden "psyche" of the Nobody.

'Or are we? Come on, look at us. We're just as hot as him, we're charming, we're skilled thanks to you having inherited my powers right alongside with this Uchiha bloodline, and we're not frozen dick-wads. What's holding you back?' Axel retaliated. But before Ren could reply, Sakura started to answer Ren's earlier question.

"All I know is that I hate Naruto…" Stab of pain for "Sasuke" hiding in the tree.

"…and that I love Sasuke, that's all." Ren and the hidden "Sasuke" could only stare at the reply. After a moment, "Sasuke" started to clutch his heart and scream "WHY!?" in his head.

'Hey, kiddo. She didn't exactly sound too sure about her profession of love there.' Axel butted in within Ren's subconscious

'How would you know? She sounded pretty confident to me.' Ren replied.

'Kiddo, you really need to learn from me. She's wavering right now. I mean, that comment/reason you said earlier caused her to blush. If she really loved that dick-wad, she would've easily brushed that comment aside like it was a fly.' Axel said with a triumphant smirk on his face.

'Well, unlike you, I'm considering their feelings before I actually start to act.' Ren said hotly.

'Suit yourself. Don't come crying to me if you get your heart broken though. The only thing you're getting out of me when that happens is an I told you so.' Axel said. With that, Ren refocused his attention to his conversation with Sakura.

"Listen, I know this may come out weird and all but you do know how my cousin is, right?" Ren asked. Sakura nodded her head in reply.

"Alright, I may not be your dream boy but if you ever need a guy who's willing to listen to you or you need a shoulder to cry on, I'm right here for ya." Ren proclaimed with a grin on his face. Sakura once again found herself blushing despite herself.

'Wow…I guess you do have a pair, kiddo.' Axel commented.

'Axel, shut up.'

'Fine, fine. Just tell me later how this goes 'cause if you don't, I'll probe your brain and memory for it.' And with that Axel remained silent for the day. As for "Sasuke", he was down-right pissed and jealous.

'ARGH!! WHERE DOES HE GET OFF TO PROCLAIM SUCH CRAP!?!? THAT SHOULD BE ME DOWN THERE!!! Ulp…..oh no….I got the runs….!' And with that "Sasuke" started to take off for the facilities. Of course, this entire time he was hidden in a tree and because of the sudden stomach pains, he forgot and fell right off the tree onto the ground right behind Ren and Sakura. The impact, along with the stomach pains, caused "Sasuke" to explode in a puff of smoke to reveal Naruto. Ren and Sakura turned around only to see the rapidly disappearing back of Naruto.

"Uh…was that Naruto we just saw now?" Ren asked.

"If it was, I don't even want to know what happened to him." Sakura replied. Ren smirked and then stood up.

"Hey, it's almost time to meet our Jonin instructors. Heh, I wonder what he'll be like…?" Ren said. Sakura stood up along with him.

"Well, we'll never find out until we actually meet up with him, so let's go." Sakura said. And with that, both went walking off to find their teammates.

Author's Note: Based upon the 1 vote I received. I have decided that I should extend the chapters a bit. So far, this chapter is an experimental one based upon that subject. Also, the questionaire from the last chapter is still in effect since no one seems to have voted upon the subject referring to the other characters. Despite this, thank you for reading, all comments and reviews are much appreciated, and I hope that many will start reading my writings and take joy in it (although, reviews would still be nice).


	6. Chapter 5

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 5

After finding Sasuke and Naruto, all four made their way to the designated classroom in which they would meet their Jonin instructors. There was but one problem though…..the said Jonin instructor was late. By an extremely lengthy amount of time. To be exact, 1 hour. Naruto was repeatedly showing his disdain by opening the doors and looking down the halls, left and right.

"Naruto, cut it out!" Sakura said, getting annoyed by Naruto's repeated meanderings.

"Why are we the only cell whose teacher hasn't shown up yet!? I mean, all the other teams have gone off with their teachers and even Iruka-sensei is gone too." Naruto replied, expressing the same annoyance everyone was feeling, except for Ren. Ren took the time to indulge himself in the pleasure of catnapping on one of the long desks between Sasuke and Sakura.

Naruto began to move a table near to the door with an eraser in his hand, still full of chalk from earlier classes. Sakura and Sasuke, taking notice of this, began to wonder what he was up to. Of course, Sasuke would express it within his own mind because he's just like that and Sakura would express it verbally.

"Hey Naruto! What are you up to!?" Sakura yelled. This elicited a small groan from Ren, who was beginning to wake up from his catnap. Meanwhile, Naruto had set up an age old prank by placing the eraser tightly between the door and the door-frame, all the while snickering.

"This is what he gets for making us wait so long." Naruto answered, pride showing in his voice.

"Grow up, Naruto! I want no part of it!" Sakura retorted. Of course, if we were to take a closer look inside Sakura's head, we would find that her Inner Sakura also shared Naruto's mischievousness.

'Stuff like this is the best!' Inner Sakura said, all the while giggling. Sasuke took this time to make his voice known. In fact, if I didn't know any better, I would say that this was his 5th or 6th line in this entire story so far.

"There's no way that a superior shinobi would be caught by such a simple booby trap." Sasuke said. By this time Ren had fully woken and was gaining his bearings and was yawning.

"AHHHhhhhhHHhahh….that was a good nap. Anything good happen? Ren asked drowsily, swaying from side to side a bit.

No sooner had Ren asked this, a gloved hand was seen moving the door aside so the person could enter. Of course, this only allowed the chalk-full eraser to fall upon the unfortunate head that was their Jonin instructor.

"HA HA HA HA!!! GOTCHA!!" Naruto yelled, all the while laughing his head off.

"I'm sorry, sensei, I tried to stop him, but Naruto…" Sakura said timidly as if in apology. Of course, let's take a look to Inner Sakura again, shall we?

'SET HIM UP AND KNOCK HIM DOWN!! THAT WAS AWESOME!!' Inner Sakura raved. My, she's quite the little minx, isn't she? Sasuke though, had more…skeptical thoughts about the Jonin instructor.

'So…this is our elite shinobi leader? He looks completely worthless!' Sasuke thought. Ren was still confused about what was going on and just continued staring off into space drowsily.

The Jonin instructor finally let out a small laugh and began to speak.

"Hmmm…how shall I put this? Based on my first impression, I would have to say……I HATE YOU!!" Said the Jonin instructor. Everyone, save Ren, began to look a bit squeamish thinking only one thing.

'Uh-oh.'

"Now then, if you're all ready it's time I took you somewhere else in order to get to know the team." Said the Jonin instructor and then he began to leave. Naruto and Sasuke began leaving as soon as the Jonin instructor started to leave. Ren was still sleepy and couldn't comprehend what the Jonin instructor had said. Sakura took notice of this and walked towards him.

"Come on, Ren. If you don't snap out of it, you're going to be left behind." Sakura said, at the same time extending her hand out for Ren to take.

"Oh…ahhHHHhaaah…thanks." Ren replied, taking Sakura's hand and trying to wipe the tiredness out of his eyes. The two, hand in hand, began to follow their team-mates and Jonin instructor.

After traveling shinobi-style, as in jumping from roof-top to roof-top, several houses away from the Academy, they stopped at one roof-top that had 6 trees lined up in pairs with arches looming over them. The four students, this time with a completely awoken Ren, were sitting on the steps that lead to the trees while their Jonin instructor was sitting opposite of them, leaning on the railing.

"Now, I'd like you all to tell us a little about ourselves." The Jonin instructor said.

"Like what?" replied all 4 confused students.

"…You know, the usual. Your favorite thing…what you hate most…dreams, ambitions, hobbies. Things like that." Replied the Jonin instructor shrugging his shoulders. Naruto began to speak.

"Help us out here, coach. You go first. Show us how it's done." Naruto said.

"That's right…after all, you're a complete stranger to us…a mystery." Sakura said, sharing Naruto's sentiments.

And what a mystery this man was. If you were to compare this man's shocking white hair to anything, you would probably equate it to either a flaming fire-ball or a broom. Although he was wearing the normal Jonin attire, his mysteriousness was further deepened by his mask that covered the lower half of his face along with the Konohagakure (A/N: Correct word?) headband positioned in a haphazardly angle, covering his left eye. Indeed, a mystery to behold.

Oh…..me? My name is Hatake Kakashi. I'm the kind of person who doesn't feel like talking about his likes and dislikes! My dreams of the future are none of your business…but anyway, I have lots of hobbies…" The now known Kakashi said. All 4 of the students turned to each other.

"Hey…he said a lot…but all we really learned was his name." Sakura said.

"Heh heh…well, secrecy is part of being a shinobi, I guess." Ren replied.

'Either that or this guy is a freak. I mean seriously, the prank blondey pulled off back at the classroom is like grade-school stuff and this guy fell for it like a complete idiot. And what's up with his hair? I swear I could probably use it as a mop or something…' Axel said.

'Not now, Axel. Besides, he could be stronger than he lets on, you know. And who are you to insult his hair!? Look at us! We have a freaking red porcupine on our head that we call hair!' Ren retorted.

'Hey, lay off the hair, kiddo. Besides, I find that the flaming, spiky red hair accentuates our unique eye color, don't you agree?' Axel replied, smirking.

'Ya know…yeah, I guess you're…HEY, WAIT A MINUTE!' Ren said. At this, Axel began laughing his head off.

"Now, it's your turn. Starting with you on the right." Kakashi said, interrupting any further musings of his 4 students. Naruto looked up.

"Me, right!? My name is Uzumaki Naruto! What I like is instant cup ramen! What I like even better is when Iruka-sensei treats me to ramen at the Ichiraku noodle bar!! What I hate most is the 3 minute wait after I pour in the boiling water. My dream is to one day…" Naruto began saying.

'He appears to have nothing more on his mind than ramen…' Kakashi thought. Axel thought the same thing.

'Geez, this guy's a freak too. What's with the ramen obsession?' Said Axel.

'Ok, maybe he's just a bit obsessed with ramen but I don't think that exactly qualifies him as a freak, Axel.' Ren reprimanded. Naruto then continued to say his dream.

"…BECOME A BETER SHINOBI THAN LORD HOKAGE!! And then everyone will have to acknowledge my existence at last!!" Naruto finished, gripping his Konohagakure headband. This earned him a small look of surprise from Kakashi which soon turned into a grin. Of course, this could be barely seen because of the mask but if you observed his eye, maybe it was readable.

'Well, hasn't he turned out interesting…' Kakashi thought. Ren was grinning as well.

'Huh, guess he isn't a total freak after all.' Said Axel. Naruto continued on to his hobbies.

"My hobbies are…pranks and practical jokes, I guess." Naruto finished. Kakashi scratched his head as if remembering today's earlier prank.

'I see…' Kakashi thought. After finishing that thought, Kakashi then said, "Next!" And Sasuke began to start.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha. There are plenty of things I hate, but I don't see that it matters, considering there is almost nothing I do like…"

"SASUKE!! YOU WOUND ME!! DON'T YOU LIKE ME, YOUR EVER SO LOVABLE COUSIN!?!?" Ren interrupted dramatically, fake tears and all. Everyone looked at him strangely, save Sasuke who only replied.

"No!"

"Ah well, that's ok. I like you too, Cuz'." Ren said and gave a small smooch on Sasuke's cheek. This, of course, elicited a blush from Sasuke and him…flipping out I guess…by scrambling to sit on the opposite side of Naruto, trying to put as much distance away from his estranged cousin as he can.

"REN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Sakura yelled. Then again, if any fan-girls were around, they would probably scream their heads off like a wild banshee and faint from…inappropriate thoughts.

"What? At least it wasn't on the lips like it was with Naruto!" Ren replied, grinning. Sasuke and Naruto shuddered at the same time, remembering that horrid moment. Kakashi interrupted.

"Ahem…if we can continue…" Everyone seemed to calm down after this but not without Sasuke giving Ren a small glare before continuing.

"…It seems pointless to talk about "dreams"…that's just a word……but what I do have is determination. I plan to restore my clan. And there is someone I have sworn……to kill." Sasuke finished. Everyone stared at him.

'Who could it possibly be?' Sakura thought. After musing upon this, she gave a small look at Ren, who surprisingly looked serious and solemn.

'Wow, even Ren is quiet about this…' Sakura thought once again. Naruto, on the other hand, was nervous.

'Sure hope it's not me…' Naruto thought.

'……….I suspected as much…' Kakashi thought. Ren began to speak.

"Don't be an idiot, cuz'. We both know that you and I could never kill him. We're not as crazy as him, remember?" Ren said, staring at his cousin with a serious look.

"HOW CAN YOU NOT CARE!? HE KILLED OUR ENTIRE FAMILY!! ARE YOU SAYING THAT YOU DON'T HATE HIM AT ALL!?!?" Sasuke snapped. Everyone, save Kakashi and Ren, looked surprise that Sasuke was even capable of yelling. Ren could only look down.

"Believe me, I would like to kill him too, cuz', but if we do, we're just going to be the same as him…a heartless murderer. He may have gained strength by massacring our entire family but we can gain our own strength through different means, more humane means…" Ren replied.

"HOW WILL THAT CHANGE ANYTHING!? ARE YOU SAYING THAT WE SHOULD JUST LET HIM CONTINUE LIVING DESPITE WHAT HE DID!?" Sasuke retorted, his anger flaring. Ren, who was far more passionate, exploded with anger.

"OF COURSE IT WON'T CHANGE ANYTHING!! THE ONLY THING THAT MATTERS IS THAT WE'RE ALIVE!! WHY CAN'T YOU BE HAPPY ABOUT THAT!? HE COULD HAVE KILLED US BOTH BUT HE DIDN'T!! DON'T YOU THINK THAT MEANS SOMETHING!? WE SHOULD JUST BE HAPPY THAT WE'RE EVEN ALIVE AND CHERISH IT!!! DON'T YOU THINK THAT'S WHAT OUR PARENTS WOULD HAVE WANTED US TO DO!?" As Ren was yelling, a perimeter of fire flared up all around them in a circle. The flames danced as if reflecting Ren's anger and sorrow, as if reaching towards the heavens. Kakashi had to dive away from the railing into the circle in order to avoid being burnt by the ring of fire. After composing himself, Kakashi then began to speak.

"Ok, that's enough you two. This sort of matter shouldn't exactly be…public. Ren, could you put out the flames before someone calls an emergency?"

Ren complied by sighing, calming himself down. The fire then slowly began to die down. Luckily, no stranger or patrolling shinobi noticed the sudden flames to incite panic. To say that everyone there was surprised though was an understatement. Questions floated around Sakura's and Naruto's head, curious as to how Ren was able to do such a thing and without hand seals.

"Now then, why don't we skip on over to Sakura before Ren? Give him time to calm down." Kakashi said, beginning to return to his earlier spot on the railing but then thought better of it and stood a little bit of a distance away since it might be hot from the fire. Ren looked guilty due his lack of control over his power of fire.

'This could become more dangerous than I originally thought…' Kakashi thought. Sakura, still looking a bit frightened at Ren's explosive anger, began to speak, solemnly.

"My name is Sakura Haruno. I don't have much to say I guess. My favorite thing is…well, I'm not sure "thing" is the right word since it's actually a boy…but lately, I think I have…ummm…never mind, let's move on to my hobbies, which is reading Romance novels."

'If it weren't for the incident, I would have to say that young girls are more interested in love than ninjutsu…' Kakashi thought. He then shifted his line of vision towards Ren.

"Alright, finally, it's your turn."

"Right…my name is Ren Uchiha, Sasuke's cousin. My favorite thing is…my memories, I guess. As for what I hate…well, you could probably tell from my temper is the one who killed our family. But one thing I also hate is fighting friends. My dream…my dream is to one day become strong enough to protect those around me and keep them happy. I want my friends and my cuz' to laugh and smile and not worry about the bad things in life…because of that, I guess my hobby is training with my cuz' and trying to learn how to control my…unique ability."

Ren was taking a page from Axel's memories. After all, since they were both one and the same, Ren could see and feel what Axel experienced in Axel's former life. All the memories, the feelings, all were real.

"Alright, that's enough. I believe we all understand one another. Formal training begins tomorrow." Kakashi said. At this, Naruto became excited and mock-saluted, despite the atmosphere.

"Yes, Sir! What will our duties be!? Our first real shinobi mission!" Naruto yelled.

"Our first project involves only the members of this cell." Kakashi replied.

"What is it? What?" Naruto questioned excitedly. Everyone began to slowly move away from the dramatic event that occurred and focused on the matter at hand, lightening the mood a little.

"Survival exercises." Kakashi simply replied, as if it was the simplest thing in the world. Everyone look at him curiously.

"Survival exercises?" Naruto asked, looking skeptically. Sasuke had nothing to say.

"But why would that be a mission? Our school days were full of survival training!" Sakura said.

"But you'll have to survive…against me. It won't be your typical practice." Kakashi replied simply once again. Everyone looked questioningly at him.

"Well, then, what kind of practice will it be?" Naruto asked. Kakashi only let out a small laugh in response.

"What are you laughing about, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked, beginning to grow tired of his game of suspense.

"Oh, nothing. It's just that if I told you, you'd chicken out." Kakashi answered, as if making a joke.

"Chicken out…? Why!?" Naruto asked incredously. Kakashi then began to go "scary-mode" and answered.

"Of the twenty-seven members of your graduating class, only nine will be accepted as junior-shinobi. The other eighteen must go back for more training. **The test we are about to perform has a 66 rate of failure**."

Everyone was pretty much freaking out about now. Naruto had a face that suggested it was the end of the world. Sakura was looking sickly. Ren was looking nervous, remembering his dream. Sasuke was only slightly nervous though the sweat-drop told a different story. Despite this, Kakashi began to laugh.

"Ha ha ha! See? You're chickening out already!" Kakashi said. Naruto was just angry and voiced his opinions.

"That sucks!!! We've been through hell! What about our graduation test!?" Naruto asked.

"Oh! We wanted to eliminate all the hopeless cases from your ranks. The ones who are left are the only ones who show true potential." Kakashi answered.

"SAY WHAT!?!?" Naruto yelled.

"In any event, we'll meet tomorrow morning on the practice field so that I can evaluate each of your skills and weaknesses. Bring all of your ninja tools and weapons. And don't have breakfast beforehand…unless you enjoy throwing up." Kakashi said, ignoring Naruto's inner torment.

'No way will I let this set me back. I'll kick Kakashi-sensei's ass! THEN I'll get some respect! YEAH!' Naruto resolved, despite said torment. Kakashi began to walk forward with papers in hand, one for each of them.

"The details of your assignment are in this handout. Memorize it and don't be late!" Kakashi said with authority in his voice this time. Sakura was slightly freaking out at the thought of throwing up.

"Throw up!? How hard is this exercise going to be!?" Sakura yelled. Despite this, she took the handout. She also took a glance at Sasuke, who crumpled the handout with a look of determination, and Ren, who looked at with a mix of anger and sorrow, as if it was dragging up unwanted memories. Sakura became worried and began to wonder who might've done the deed that caused the 2 to be like this. Naruto was just panicking.

"Alright, that's enough for today. Again, don't be late!" Kakashi said before disappearing in a puff of smoke and leaves, leaving the 4 students alone. Ren and Sasuke stood up at the same time, silent and solemn, and left together. Naruto stood up as soon as they left.

"I gotta get to training! Hey, Sakura! Want to train with me?" Naruto asked, hoping she would say yes. Sakura turned to him.

"Huh? Oh, no, I think I'll go home and…think about some things." Sakura answered half-heartedly. Naruto became disappointed but then quickly recovered and left, remembering his resolve. Sakura stood up as Naruto left and made her way to her own home, one question floating around in her mind.

'Who could've possibly done such a thing to them?'

Later in the night of the same day, Sasuke and Ren were walking towards the estate the once great Uchiha clan once lived. Since the massacre, it's been empty and always had a feeling like that of a haunted ground, especially at night. Despite all of this, Sasuke and Ren called it home and lived in it. As they entered one of the mansions, Ren began to speak.

"I'm going to bed now. Wake me if you need anything, ok, cuz'?" Ren was beginning to make his way towards his room until Sasuke spoke up.

"Ren…" Ren turned around facing his cousin, curiosity in his eyes.

"I'm…sorry…about before." Sasuke apologized, almost straining to say it since he never seemed to say it a lot since the massacre. Ren only stared at him for a second before grinning.

"Hey, no worries, cuz'. After all, we're all that's left of the Uchiha clan. Wouldn't do us any good having us hate each other. Besides, I could never hate you." Ren replied good-naturedly. Ren then yawned.

"Oh man, it's getting late. Alright then, g'night, cuz'."

"Good night…" Sasuke replied, and both made their way to their respective rooms.

Author's Note: Wow, 8 pages. Also, as I was typing this chapter up a thought popped into my head. Therefore, there will be another questionaire. And this revolves around Sasuke and Naruto. Should I make them a yaoi couple or not? Yes, I realize this may come off as strange as a guy but I feel this will broaden my horizons in writing. If you wish to vote, please reply in the form of a review. Also, I would like to take this time to announce that the 2nd story in this series has been updated. It is only the prologue but I will work on it as I work on this story as well. The story can be found in the Romance/Rated T/Kin section. Thank you for reading, all reviews are appreciated, and I hope you enjoy reading my stories.


	7. Chapter 6

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 6

Author's Note/Disclaimer: In my eagerness in updating, I seem to have forgotten to put a disclaimer in the previous chapters. Please forgive this mistake and I shall be more diligent in applying Disclaimers. While we're on the subject, I do not own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts II.

It was a beautiful morning. The sun was shining to its fullest, the birds were singing with gusto, and a gentle breeze would flow in every now and then. The symphony of nature was a sight to behold. Yet these things held no interest for the 4 students that waited begrudgingly for their late teacher for the second time since they met him. When Kakashi finally showed up, he only had 2 words to explain his tardiness.

"Good morning, class!" Kakashi said, almost far too jovially. Naruto, Sakura, and Ren only had one response to that one.

"YOU'RE LATE!!!" They screamed.

Kakashi ignored their anger and continued to walk towards 3 trunks all lined up. He then stopped in front of the middle trunk and placed an alarm clock on top of it.

"I've set this alarm to go off at noon." Kakashi began to explain. This elicited confusion from his four pupils but they continued to stay silent as he continued to explain the exercise they were about to perform.

"I have here three small bells…your challenge is to steal these from me before the timer sounds. Anyone who fails doesn't get any lunch. Instead, you will be tied to that tree stump, so I can eat your lunch in front of you." Kakashi finished lazily. All 4 were disheartened by the punishment, seeing as how all of them fell for Kakashi's trick and did not eat breakfast that morning. He then dangled the bells in front of him, as if enticing them to try and steal it now instead of later.

"All you need is just one bell…apiece. But since there aren't enough to go around, one of you is definitely headed for the stump…and whoever that is will be the first of you to fail. One of you is on your way back to school…and disgrace." Kakashi said. A tense silence followed his ultimatum as his 4 students looked on nervously. With a deft flick of his wrist, he caught the bells in his hand and continued talking.

"You may, if you choose, use shuriken. Attack as though you mean to kill or you'll never stand a chance." Kakashi said as if it was a normal thing to do.

"But…but that's so dangerous!" Exclaimed Sakura, worrying what harm would come to their teacher, even if he was chronologically-impaired.

"Yeah, teach…don'tcha think that this might be a little too extreme?" Ren questioned, feeling uneasy for the same reasons as Sakura. Naruto, on the other hand, was more laid-back and began laughing. Of course, if one looked more closely, you could see he was also slightly bit uneasy.

"You couldn't even dodge an eraser!! You're gonna get yourself killed!" Naruto exclaimed. Kakashi looked just a bit insulted but remembered that Naruto was just a Genin and was incapable of gauging his opponent's strength just yet. Still, he felt that he should get the last word in.

"Only the weak speak loudly. Now, let's forget the dunce, and we'll start on my signal!" Kakashi said. Of course, it wasn't enough that Sasuke called him a dunce but now his teacher too? That very word rang in Naruto's mind like a bell and with each toll, his anger rose. As his rage reached its peak, Naruto, with great practice, deftly slipped out a kunai from his kunai holster attached to his right leg, spun it expertly into a position where he could throw it with accuracy, and following his teacher's advice, began to throw the kunai with the intent of hurting Kakashi.

Yet before the kunai knife could be thrown, one hand caught Naruto's hand holding the kunai. Another grasped the back of his head. With everything in position, the hand holding Naruto's kunai-holding hand slowly yet deftly positioned the kunai to the back of Naruto's head. It took a few seconds for all 4 students to realize what just happened and see Kakashi for what he truly was: a Jonin-level shinobi, the elite only surpassed by those of the ANBU squads or the reigning elemental shadows of their hidden villages.

"Not so fast. I didn't say, "Go." Kakashi said calmly.

'Wow…! I didn't even see him move!' Sakura thought, in awe of Kakashi's stealth and speed.

'So this is an elite shinobi…' Sasuke thought, smirking with anticipation.

'Hot damn! This guy's fast! Looks like things are about to heat up, eh, Ren?' Said Axel, also smirking with anticipation in Ren's minds eye. Ren only silently agreed by mimicking Sasuke's and Axel's reaction.

"But at least you struck to kill…so, it seems you've begun to respect me. Heh heh heh…maybe…just maybe…I'm starting to like you four." Kakashi said with amusement in his voice.

"…And now…ready…steady…" Kakashi slowly said. 3 of them smirking with anticipation and 1 looking a little uneasy, prepared to do as shinobi do before commencing a mission.

"GO!!!" And with that signal, 3 disappeared in a blur of motion and a burst of wind. 1 disappeared in flames and shadow. Kakashi was left entirely alone in an open field which would look strange to a normal person passing by.

"The basis of all shinobi arts is to become invisible…eradicate yourself." Kakashi said, a lesson that is well learned amongst his students. Sasuke hiding in a nearby tree, poised to strike. Sakura lying flat to the ground near some vegetation. Ren had hidden himself within the darkness of shadows, utilizing the dark corridors that Axel had once used for far-distance teleportation as a hiding place. This ability had come with a new-found use other than travel, it was the ideal place for retreating to and observing so long as there were shadows in the area to observe through since none within the shadow corridors could be detected nor seen. And Naruto was…hey, where is Naruto?

"IT'S TIME FOR THE MATCH TO BEGIN!!" Proclaimed Naruto, standing in the same exact position that he had supposedly left when the signal was given.

"LET'S MAKE IT A REAL MATCH, WORTHY OF THE GREATEST WARRIORS!" Kakashi's reaction was only a somewhat long silence before he responded.

"You may be thinking of the wrong kind of match…" Kakashi said.

'That fool…' Sasuke thought. As Sasuke finished this thought, Naruto began charging towards Kakashi.

"The only wrong thing here is your hairstyle!" Naruto yelled. Kakashi began to wonder in the deepest recesses of his mind that if his hairstyle was wrong, what would that make Ren's hairstyle? The boy had a red porcupine on his head and Naruto was saying that his hairstyle was just plain wrong. Pushing these thoughts aside, he then reached inside a pouch that hung off the left side of his hip. Naruto, seeing this, immediately stopped to a halt.

"Let me teach you your first Ninjutsu skill!! Tai-Jutsu, the art of the trained body!" Said Kakashi. Confusion was evident on Naruto's face as questions races around in his head.

'The trained body? Isn't that like hand-to-hand combat? So how come…he's going for a weapon?' Naruto thought. Kakashi had by this time finally taken out what he was searching for from within his pouch. And it was not a shuriken, a kunai, a dagger, or any sort of weapon at all. Instead, he took out……Make-Out Paradise. To say Naruto was confused now was an understatement, he was down-right lost at that moment.

"Is something wrong? I thought you were coming for me." Kakashi calmly said beginning to seemingly focus his attention to his book.

"…But…you…I mean, I…I mean…why are you…that's a book!" Naruto finally said, after much babbling.

"Of course, it's a book. I've been dying to found out how this story ends. Carry on…it shouldn't make any difference in the outcome, considering who I'm up against." Kakashi replied calmly while flipping a page. It took Naruto a moment to fully comprehend what Kakashi had just said and when it did, he exploded.

"I'M GONNA FLATTEN YOU!" Naruto yelled in rage. Naruto charged towards his teacher. When he was a few feet away from Kakashi, Naruto jumped towards him, attempting to attack Kakashi by using the back of his right fist. Kakashi deftly blocked this attack, his eyes never leaving the book. When he did, Naruto responded by twisting his hip in mid-air in an attempt to hit Kakashi with a round-house kick with his left leg. Kakashi, once again eyes never leaving the book, merely ducked under the kick. Naruto, upon landing charged towards him, preparing to attack Kakashi with a straight punch with his left hand this time.

"All right! That's it!!" Naruto yelled. Naruto swung his fist only to find air.

"What the…?" Naruto said. Kakashi was directly behind him, crouching with book in hand and with a hand-seal prepared.

"Showing your back so many times is very poor Ninjutsu…dunce." Kakashi said calmly. Sakura, surveying everything from her hiding spot, began to panic.

'He's using his hands to make the sign of the Tiger! But he couldn't be! It's much too advanced a technique to use against Naruto!' Sakura thought, her swift analytic abilities and intelligence kicking in. Sasuke within his own hiding spot was thinking along the same lines.

'Impossible…now he's making the sign of Flames…that damned teacher wasn't just running around…'

'This could get ugly…' Ren thought.

Sakura, thinking of the well-being of Naruto, stood up from her hiding place.

"Naruto---!!! Get out of there!!! You'll be killed!" Sakura yelled. Right after she finished her warning, Ren appeared in a swirl of flames and darkness, grabbed Sakura from behind, and immediately disappeared with her in tow in the same manner.

"What?" Unfortunately, Naruto became distracted which was all Kakashi needed.

"Too late." Kakashi said. Naruto was too slow and Kakashi began his attack, with a very dangerous gleam in his visible eye.

"Konohagakure Village's most secret and most sacred technique!!! ONE THOUSAND YEARS OF DEATH!"

"YAAAAAH!" Was Naruto's most painful scream he could muster. He was also sent flying forward to the near-by river due to the nature of the technique. What is the "One Thousand Years of Death" one asks? Let us turn to Sakura and Ren who are both hiding in the shadow corridors observing what just happened.

"………That's supposed to be Ninjutsu!?!? What kind of "sacred technique" is that? Looks more like he just shoved something right up Naruto's ass!" Sakura observed indignantly, somewhat blushing from the disturbingly explained technique. Ren could only stare in surprise and in fright.

"Keeping the guard up sounds nice, ne?" Ren replied. Sasuke had a differing opinion upon his hiding place in the trees.

"………Huh! They're both buffoons!" Sasuke said, quietly enough not to be heard by Kakashi.

Naruto had hit the river by this time and had gone underwater. Kakashi continued reading his book, blushing at a certain part. Sasuke quietly observed and stayed silent while Sakura and Ren did the same within the shadow corridors, safe from detection.

'That kind of strength isn't fair play! How are we supposed to beat him?' Sakura thought.

'This isn't looking too good…Naruto may be an idiot but I hardly think he's a slouch. Axel, any ideas?' Ren thought.

'Well, I dunno. I suppose we could try wearing him out with the Homura Gokusha (Flame Prison)…you should also probably try getting everyone's help too so that he doesn't escape.' Axel replied.

'How can I do that when there are only three bells and we can only get one bell apiece? No one would want to make that sacrifice.' Ren replied, yet he forgot one important factor that Axel would use.

'Uhhh…hello? Remember how this morning you ate breakfast completely forgetting the scarecrow told you not to because he said you guys were going to throw up?' Ren could only pause, and then slap his forehead due to his forgetfulness. There was one thing that still bothered him.

'What if he somehow manages to escape? He can probably take on all of us in the same manner as he did Naruto.' Ren thought. Axel chuckled at his repeated forgetfulness.

'Well, if you're that nervous, there's always the Nobodies that we…actually, you can summon.' Axel replied.

'How can you be so sure that they will listen to me? They have minds of their own, don't they?' Ren questioned, still unsure.

'Given your current state now, the only Nobody that you can probably keep in complete control are the Dusks and Creepers. Besides, they'll recognize you anyways and will listen to you so go ahead and give it a shot.' Axel answered, confidence in his voice. Ren thought over the plan and finally agreed to it.

'Alright, I just need to get the others in on the plan.' Ren thought. He then turned to Sakura.

"Sakura, I've got a plan that might just work. The only thing is we need Naruto's and Sasuke's help to pull it off." Ren said. Sakura turned to him with a surprised look on her face.

"You have a plan? But how, even if we did all attack at once, one of us is bound to fail." Sakura said, reminding Ren and Axel about that one major flaw. Both had only one thought.

'D'OH!!'

"Ummm…well, I guess I can take the fall. For one, I already had breakfast. As for the failure part…well, who knows? Maybe I'll be able to pass for my cunning?" Ren replied nervously. Sakura still seemed contemplative.

"But…that's unfair to you. We're supposed to be a team but this test pits us against each other…" Sakura deliberated sadly. Ren also looked down in sadness.

"Well, what can I do? I mean, there's always next time, right?" Ren replied cheerfully, trying to hide his disappointment.

'Kiddo, sometimes you're too good for your own good…' Axel cut in.

'Heh…well yeah, I get it from you, remember?' Ren replied with a grin. Axel only smirked.

'I guess you're right…go do what you gotta do.' Axel said. Ren, in his mind's eye, nodded.

"Looks like I'm going to need to save Naruto. Though, why he's arguing with himself is beyond me…" Ren looked on curiously, Sakura following suit. And Naruto…actually, multiple Narutos were arguing amongst themselves.

As Ren and Sakura were talking, Naruto was successful in catching Kakashi's back with a Kage-Bunshin technique and well-played deceit. Unfortunately, Naruto's pride got in the way and he attempted to attack Kakashi while his clones kept him in place only to have Naruto punch Naruto. This trickery threw all of them into disarray.

"YOU'RE KAKASHI-SENSEI, AREN'T YOU!? YOU USED THE ART OF TRANSFORMATION TO CHANGE!!" One of the Narutos yelled angrily. This sparked rage amongst the other Narutos and started a fight amongst them, all of them accusing the other of being the culprit. One very beat-up looking Naruto then came up with a solution.

"Hey! Wait a minute. Drop the illusion. If you do, there'll just be two of us…and you'll know for sure which of us is which." The beat-up one suggested.

"Why didn't you think of that sooner, idiot!?" Retorted one of the clones.

"Because I'm you, IDIOT!" Retaliated the beat-up one. After agreeing, all dropped the illusion only to leave the very beat-up looking Naruto in a clearing, alone.

"Hmm…on second thought, I'll get Sasuke first and then Naruto since we don't know where Kakashi ran off to." Ren observed and with that he faded into the darkness only to reappear seconds later with Sasuke in tow, who looked rather indignant at being suddenly taken into the shadow corridors.

"What is this all about? And why did you drag me here, Ren?" Sasuke asked, irritated.

"Hold on, I'll explain once we get Naruto here and where Kakashi is hiding." Ren replied observing Naruto's sudden excitement. Everyone within observed also. The reason for Naruto's excitement was that he found one of the bells lying innocently by a tree.

"Hee-Hee-Hee-Hee! He must have been pretty flustered to drop one…..hah…" Naruto said to himself gleefully. When Naruto was near enough and made a move to grab the bell, a noose suddenly wrapped around his leg and pulled him away from the bell and high up into the air, hanging from the tree's higher branches hidden by the foliage.

"WHAT THE HELL--!?" Naruto cried out indignantly. Everyone within the shadow corridors only sighed.

"Geez, you'd think he would know it was a trap." Sakura said.

"Well, I probably would've done the same thing if I was in his position, right, Sasuke?" Ren replied grinning. Sasuke remained silent for a moment before replying.

"Of course it's a trap…but even more troubling…Kakashi didn't drop his guard even once during the fight with Naruto…" Sasuke answered. Everyone then became quiet and pondered on Sasuke's observation, since it was true. Did they have what it takes to actually get one of the bells? Meanwhile, Kakashi had finally shown up and retrieved the bell he supposedly dropped.

"You used your technique well, but so did I…and you were the one who got used. And to be caught in such an obvious trap…was stupid!" Kakashi lectured, leisurely tossing up the one bell in his hand. Naruto could only growl in anger at his predicament.

"Shinobi read the hidden meanings within the hidden meanings!" Kakashi said with an uncharacteristically cheerful tone in his voice.

"I know that!!" Naruto retaliated angrily.

"Uh, no you don't. That's why I'm saying it." Kakashi retorted calmly.

Seemingly out of nowhere, a red, flaming chakram flew towards the rope keeping Naruto suspended in mid-air. The chakram cut through the rope and got stuck in the tree. Naruto fell towards the ground only to have a burst of flames and shadow appear and engulf him. When the flames and shadows died down, nothing was left and the chakram stuck to the tree had mysteriously disappeared too, leaving Kakashi once again alone on the field.

Author's Note: I would like to take this time to tell readers that my current plan is to have all of my stories updated on a weekly basis in order to keep things moving along. If I am incapable of doing this, then the next update will assuredly be on the week after the missed one. As for the update times, it can be expected during the weekends. Thank you for continuing to read this story, all reviews are appreciated, and I hope all of you enjoy reading my stories.


	8. Chapter 7

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts II.

"WHERE THE HELL AM I!?!?" Naruto yelled, thoroughly freaked out of his mind. He was so thoroughly freaked out that he couldn't think straight and lost his power of internal dialogue.

"Ummm….ok no need to panic. This is all one bad dream. Ha ha. Yeah, that's it. I'm probably still hanging by my foot in that tree and this swirling world of darkness is just a dream." Naruto said, and rubbed his eyes as if to wake himself from his supposed dream.

When he stopped and still found himself in the swirling world of darkness, he began to panic.

"AHHHH!!! THIS ISN'T HOW I'M SUPPOSED TO DIE!!! LET ME OUTTA HERE!!"

"WILL YOU CALM DOWN, NARUTO!?!?' Sakura yelled before delivering a vicious upper-cut that sent Naruto into the air with spin. Ren and Sasuke could only look on with only one thought in their minds.

'Ooooohhh…that had to hurt.'

After Naruto calmed down and recovered from the sudden blow, Sasuke turned to Ren.

"Alright, since we're all here do you mind explaining what we're doing here in the first place?" Naruto began to comment as well.

"Yeah, what are we doing here in this freaky place?"

"Well, for one, I've got a plan. This is what I got in mind. First, we keep Kakashi-sensei trapped in one area. I can do that with my Homura Gokusha (Flame Prison) jutsu. From there, all we have to do is prevent Kakashi from jumping out of the jutsu by using shuriken. That I'm going to leave to you guys on the outside since I'm the only one impervious to the heat and flames." Ren explained. Everyone then reviewed the plan in their heads.

"Wait, can you really handle Kakashi-sensei alone? He's already proven that he's above and beyond our level." Said Sakura.

"Yeah…that might be the problem so I'm probably going to need to call for back-up." Ren replied, scratching the back of his head nervously. With that, another swirl of whitish shadows formed until 2 different creatures appeared. One was lanky looking with a zipper forming the teeth for its mouth, possessing no hands but instead tentacle-like limbs for arms. The second was smaller in height, reaching just above the feet. This one came off as stranger looking than the first one since it seemed to be composed of only 2 feet and an elongated bird's head. Naruto and Sakura looked on with awe, except for Sasuke who had seen Ren do this before.

"The more human looking one you see is called a Dusk. They sort of specialize in just regular combat except they're very flexible and can attack from odd angles. The shorter one over there is called a Creeper. Technically, they're the weakest amongst my repertoire of Summoning jutsus but in groups they can be a pain." Ren explained.

"How the heck are these freaky things going to help us? Kakashi already has us beat in that department." Naruto retorted, still not getting the point of the purpose of the back-up.

"That may be true…if we work alone. My suggestion is that we all work together in order to succeed this test." Ren replied calmly.

"You're forgetting the fact that he has only three bells. Not only does the person who doesn't have a bell starve but he also fails to become a Shinobi and has to be sent back to the Academy." Sasuke replied, stating the one flaw of this plan.

"Well, Sakura and I sort of already discussed that issue…and I've decided to take the fall. I can handle the starving part because I sort of already ate breakfast despite what Kakashi-sensei said." Ren replied with a grin. He then turned serious.

"But…this can only be done if all of you are willing to help me."

Naruto and Sasuke stared at him to see if he was truly serious, trying to find any sign of deceit. When none could be found, they began to speak.

"You've always done things the way you wanted to so I won't stop you. The only thing I'm going to ask is are you sure you want to be the sacrifice in this plan of yours?" Asked Sasuke.

"Looks like Sasuke and I actually agree on something for once…I don't like the idea that you're the only one that's bound to fail." Naruto replied, doubt in his voice.

"Relax, you guys. Who knows? Maybe he'll let me pass for creativity or something." Ren answered with a grin.

Kakashi was still on the field alone. Since he couldn't sense them anywhere anymore, he figured that they might have hidden somewhere and were formulating plans somewhere else.

'Hmmm…I wonder if any of them will get the point of this exercise.' Kakashi thought, but then growing bored, whipped out Make-Out Paradise and began reading. At that moment, multiple swirls of whitish shadows began to form and Kakashi then began to find himself accosted by 12 Dusks, surrounding and positioning themselves around him like a clock-face.

"So, this must be the special talent of the estranged Uchiha member of the clan. I'm impressed." Kakashi said without looking up from his book once. Ren then appeared before him in a swirl of shadow and flame with a wild smirk on his face.

"Well now, I'm glad you like it Kakashi-sensei. In fact…I'M ALMOST FLATTERED!!!" Ren yelled, crossing his arms before him and then suddenly flinging them open to his sides. With that, a ring of fire much like before when Ren exploded with anger was formed, surrounding both them and the Dusks. There was but one difference between the 2 though, the grass and earth below them became hot molten rock and lava.

Kakashi slightly panicked since he felt a slight burning on his feet but quickly quelled it by forming chakra to his feet to protect him from the heat. When he looked back to Ren, he found swirls of shadow and flame snaking around Ren's arms to his hands. When they had reached the stopping point, they converged into one and formed the chakrams that he saw cut Naruto down from the trap. Kakashi then looked up to see strange looking swords and spear floating above the perimeter of the flames, the same number and positioning as the Dusks.

'Well now, this one seems to have potential. Let's see what he's got.' Kakashi thought, putting away the book in his pouch and pulling out a kunai from the holster on his right thigh.

Ren then charged at him throwing both chakrams at him, which then burst into flames and spun rapidly. Kakashi merely ducked in order to dodge them but found the white tentacle limb of one of the Dusks rapidly coming at him in an attempt smack him in the face. Kakashi jumped up in order to avoid the attack but found himself attacked again by one of the Creepers that formed into a sword in an attempt to stab him. Kakashi deftly blocked with his kunai and using the sword as a foot-hold, jumped towards the edge in an attempt to escape. He was met once again by the Creepers that had formed themselves into swords and spears blocking his path but this time with the accompaniment of shuriken. This combined attack prevented him from escaping and before he fell back to the ground, he caught a glimpse of Naruto and Sakura giving the V-sign and Sasuke with a smug look on his face.

'So…this is what they have planned. Trap me in a dangerous environment in order to wear me out…of course, since they're on a time-limit they're going to attack hard and fast. Looks like they all got the point of this exercise. Though, I wonder if they're capable of getting one of these bells.' Kakashi thought calmly.

As he was thinking this, the chakrams Ren threw began coming back from their earlier throw, straight towards Kakashi. Kakashi then moved into a defensive stance to deflect the chakrams. Just before the chakrams made contact with the kunai, Ren appeared right before him and had a hold of the chakrams in each hand. Kakashi's surprise was visible in the one eye that could be seen.

'What!? When did he get in front of me!?' Before Kakashi could try reasoning how Ren had gotten there, Ren began to attack with the chakrams in his hand.

Alternating both slashes and throwing the chakrams, Ren attacked with great calculation. Should Kakashi dodge, one of the Dusks would rush in with an attack from their gangly limbs. If he attempted to escape, he would be met by the Creepers in their sword and spear forms along with a rain of shuriken.

'I guess I'm going to need to break out one of the big moves…" Kakashi thought and began to form an assortment of seals.

Ren noticing this began to panic.

'Crap, what's he trying to do!? Gotta mess up his concentration!' Ren thought wildly. Ren rushed in.

"Homura Kagai (Flame Assault)!!" As Ren charged in, pillars of flame would ignite before him. Unfortunately, it was too late for Kakashi had finished the jutsu he had planned.

"Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu (Water Element: Water Dragon Blast)!!" The nearby river swirled rapidly and started to flow upward until it formed the shape of a dragon. The second it had fully constructed itself, the dragon began to attack by throwing itself into the center of the ring of fire. The water dragon crashed into the center in an explosion of steam and water. The Dusks and Creepers were destroyed; all 4 students were hanging onto the tree's trunk to prevent themselves from being washed away.

"Well now, I have to say I'm impressed. It was a good plan to keep me trapped in that area and try wearing me down but it seems you came up short on getting one of the bells." Kakashi said with amusement in his voice. Ren began to chuckle.

"Heh heh heh, then what are these, Kakashi-sensei?" Ren made the chakrams disappear in a burst of flames and then pulled out 3 bells from his pocket. Kakashi was once again surprised and looked towards his left hip only to see the bells gone.

"I grabbed them when I charged at you with my Homura Kagai jutsu. Sakura and I knew that all of us couldn't take you on alone so we thought it best to team up against you. Of course, there was always that one flaw about there being only one bell but hey, who cares? I already ate breakfast and as for the flunking thing…well, at least these guys pass so I'm happy." Ren said with a grin.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei! This plan was his idea! He should at least get credit for this and pass with us!" Naruto exclaimed, trying to convince Kakashi to let Ren pass as well. Kakashi began to look thoughtful.

"Hmmmm…I suppose I could let Ren pass with all of you since he's giving all 3 of you the bells…but there's one last thing to confirm." Kakashi said seriously. All 4 looked at him seriously as well.

"What was the point of this exercise and why? If any of you are able to answer that question, all of you will be able to pass. Think back to what all of you were doing." Kakashi stated. All 4 were now stumped, if they were unable to answer this one question, all of their efforts would be for naught. Sakura, being the intelligent one, ran through her memory for the answer.

'At the beginning of this exercise, we were tasked to get one of the bells. Naruto tried to do it alone and got close but he failed. Ren hid us all away and explained his plan to all of us but even if we did get all the bells, one of us would fail anyways.' Sakura thought, but then remembered what Kakashi had said before about seeking the hidden meanings within the hidden meanings and how Ren was willing enough to put the others' well-being before his.

'Could he have meant…!?' Sakura then raised her hand, instincts from her Academy days kicking in.

"Could the purpose of this exercise have been…team-work?" Sakura questioned. Everyone stared at her then turned to Kakashi to see if that was the correct answer.

"That is correct…but can you explain to me why?" Kakashi said, bringing the hopes of everyone down again.

"ARGH! What's that all about, Kakashi-sensei!? Isn't it enough that we got the basic point!?" Naruto exclaimed, already tired with the riddles.

"It is possible to gain the answer without fully understanding the concept but what then? You would be totally unprepared and a Shinobi's most important skill is preparation." Kakashi replied calmly.

"All for one and one for all'…is that it?" Sasuke answered. Everyone stared at him as well.

"If team-work was the entire point of this exercise and we had to explain why, that would basically sum it up. All of us work as one and we all benefit from the one result." Sasuke explained. Naruto stared in awe, not because of Sasuke's intelligence, but of the meaning of the quote.

"Well now, that's my cuz' for ya. You smart guy, you." Ren said and got Sasuke into a head-lock and began to give him a noogie. Sasuke struggled to get out.

"AGH!! Get off of me!" Sasuke exclaimed. Kakashi then coughed to get everyone's attention.

"That is all correct. As Sakura had said, the entire point of this exercise was team-work and as Sasuke had said, the reasoning is to work as one for the benefit of all. In a Ninja's world, those who violate the rules and fail to follow orders are lower than garbage. However, those who do not care for and support their fellows are even lower than that!" Kakashi said with a wistful look. All 4 students began to soak in the information and started cheering, giving high-fives all around. Kakashi then struck a pose and gave a thumbs-up sign.

"This exercise is now concluded. You all pass!! That's all for today, Team Seven. You duties will commence tomorrow!!!" Kakashi said. And with that, everyone packed up what they had brought and began to make their way home, happy at finally becoming a full-fledged Shinobi and wondering what the future might hold for them now.

Author's Note: I realize that the Japanese words that I have used for Ren's techniques may be incorrect. Therefore, if any of you know of a reliable Japanese-English dictionary website that has the Romaji (I think that's what it's called, Japanese words put into English wording?) option, that would be very much appreciated. As for the jutsus that have shown up in the Naruto series, I would like to thank for providing a reliable list of the names of these jutsus. Thank you for taking the time to read (and review if you did), all reviews are appreciated, and I hope you enjoyed reading this story along with my other story.


	9. Chapter 8

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts II.

In a dense forest, Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and Ren can be seen darting between bushes and trees. They finally came to a stop when they hid themselves behind separate trees, slowly moving their heads as to get a glimpse of their target but not so much as to reveal themselves. Kakashi then spoke to them through a radio-headset, allowing him to communicate with all 4 of them.

"How far is the target?"

"Five meters and closing! So…how much longer are we gonna wait?!" Naruto whispered loudly.

Ignoring Naruto's small outburst, Sakura, Sasuke, and Ren began to reply.

"I'm in position."

"So am I."

"Man…I can't believe we're even doing this…"

"All right!" Kakashi replied over the radio. After a pause, Kakashi gave them the signal ("Go!") and all 4 began their ambush. Of course, Naruto being Naruto did it far more dramatically, diving head-long into the target along with letting out a battle-cry.

"GOTCHA!!!" Naruto yelled triumphantly…only to have the target yowl very loudly and madly scratch Naruto's face. Ren sighed.

"Why we go through all this trouble for a cat is beyond me…" Kakashi began to speak again over the radio.

"Remember. Our quarry has a ribbon on its right ear that says "Tiger"…make sure there's no mistake." Sasuke went to look at the right ear of the cat and lo and behold, there was a ribbon that said "Tiger" on it.

"Target confirmed" Sasuke coolly replied. Behind him, the cat was still scratching at Naruto's face while Sakura and Ren laughed at his current predicament.

"Good! Then "Mission: Find the missing pet" is accomplished!" Kakashi said.

A little while later, Team 7 returned to Konohagakure with the pet in hand. What awaited the poor creature was something terrible…the cat was immediately hugged tightly by a short, chubby woman who wore far too much make-up and had very extravagant clothes and accessories. The poor cat didn't stand a chance.

"Poor Tiger…Good little kitty-kitty…I was so worried about you, I could have died!" Lady Shijimi said. Team 7 could only look on with mild horror and pity.

'Oh, man!!! What a nightmare. How does that poor, dumb cat put up with it?' Naruto thought.

'With that to look forward to at home, can you blame him for running away?' Sakura thought, as to not insult the client.

'Poor thing…I think it might be dead.' Axel said from deep within the recesses of Ren's psyche.

'Yeah, no kidding.' Ren agreed. The Hokage interrupted anymore train of thought by announcing their next missions.

"Now, the next assignment for Kakashi's Team 7 will be...hmm…to babysit for the Council of Elders…to run errands to the neighboring village…to help dig sweet potatoes…"

Naruto loudly interrupted the Hokage's list, expressing his deep displeasure at these menial chores with an "X" sign with his arms.

"NO WAY!! NO THANK YOU---!! BORRRRING!! GIVE US SOMETHING DIFFERENT TO DO. SOMETHING IMPORTANT! SOMETHING AMAZING!!!"

"Ok, you little bundle of energy you, calm down before we get in trouble, ne?" Ren said casually, at the same time catching Naruto in a Sleeper-hold and mildly knocking him out. Team 7 gave a sigh of relief that Naruto quieted down, also hoping they weren't going to get into any trouble for Naruto's outburst. Iruka, the ever-so-responsible-and compassionate one, reminded Naruto of his position.

"Don't be a fool--!! You're only a beginner! Everyone starts out doing grunt work. It's where you get experience, so you can work your way up to the bigger things." Iruka said, reprimanding Naruto of his fool-hardy.

"We've done tons of small stuff. Can't we get some action!?" Naruto fired back heatedly. The "small stuff" being, so far, the Missing Cat (Success), Weeding the Garden (Failure due to Naruto's overzealousness and ended up weeding the grass and flowers too), Cleaning the River (Success, even though Naruto was swept away and fell down a waterfall), and Walking the Dogs (Success, although the dog Naruto was given responsibility of dragged him into a mine field, no notable injuries were sustained other than both of them being charred).

"Naruto, that's enough. Knock it off!" Kakashi interfered, giving Naruto a good punch to the back of his head.

"Apparently Naruto needs an explanation of just what these duties are…" The Hokage said, gaining everyone's attention. He then continued.

"You see, every day, our village receives many requests for everything from babysitters to assassination. We take that tremendous variety and sort them into categories from A to D, based on the degree of skill they require. We have also divided the Shinobi into classes based on the level of their skills. After we of the upper echelon have sorted all the requests, we distribute them those of the level of ability deemed most appropriate. And…If the ninja in question completes those duties successfully then the grateful person he has helped pays him a fee. Thus far, the 4 of you have only just attained the lowest rank…level D tasks are the best you could aspire to." The Hokage finished. Unfortunately, over the course of the lecture, Ren had fallen asleep standing and Naruto was listing off Ramen that he had eaten and Ramen he would plan to eat.

"ARE YOU LISTENING?" The Hokage asked angrily, seeing as how this important explanation was completely ignored by the one who needed it the most. Kakashi, trying to make up for the 2 clowns' blatant disregard of the lecture, began to apologize only to have Naruto have another outburst.

"I don't want to hear it! All the old fart ever does is apologize and then give me a lecture. But it's not fair. There's more to me than the Trouble-making screw-up the old man thinks I am!" Naruto fired back and then turned around and pouted like a child. Kakashi only sighed silently, thinking about how much trouble he's going to be in later on.

Contrary to Kakashi's fears, Iruka and the Hokage only smiled at Naruto, both thinking about how Naruto is changing and growing up for the better.

"Very well. Since you put it that way…I will permit you to attempt a C grade task-usually reserved for Shinobi of the Chunin level…the protection of a certain individual…" The Hokage announced, complying with Naruto's wish.

Team 7 was quite surprised to this new development while Naruto was just plain ole' excited.

"ALL RIGHT!! WHO IS IT? SOME GREAT LORD? THE DAIMYO!? A PRINCESS!?" Naruto asked excitedly, firing off these questions in mere seconds.

'Hah! A C grade task to protect a lord or princess!? The kid's insane!' Axel laughed.

'Hey, you were getting bored with the D grade tasks too, you know.' Ren replied.

'Hey, at least we know our strength better and don't have such high expectations like him.'

'Hmmm…yeah, I guess that's true…that still doesn't mean we should make fun of him though.'

'Yeah, whatever kiddo.'

The Hokage reprimanded Naruto, telling him to compose himself before inviting the awaited client in. Instead of a regal lord, the Daimyo, or a beautiful princess, an old man carrying a Sake bottle walked in, leaning against the doorframe as a support.

"What's going on here? They look like a bunch of wet-nosed brats…" the old man began, pausing to take a swig of the Sake bottle in his hand, "Especially the Midget. He's got the face of an imbecile. It's a joke right? You kids aren't really ninja, are you?" the old man finished, looking at Team 7 with disdain.

"Ha-ha! Who'd you mean? Which midget? Which imbeci…!?" Naruto began until realization slowly dawned upon him. Let's take a closer look, shall we? All 4 are standing next to each other and if we were to count the hair as height, Naruto would be the Midget aka the Imbecile.

"I'LL KILL HIM!!!!!" Naruto yelled while attempting to exact his claim upon the old man only to have Kakashi prevent him from doing so by grabbing from the back of his collar.

"Wrong. No killing the old man you've been assigned to protect."

When the commotion quieted down slightly, the old man took this time to introduce himself to Team 7.

"I am Tazuna, a bridge builder of ultimate renown. Until I am safely back in my own country, where I'll be completing my next bridge, you'll all be expected to protect me…even if it costs you your lives!"

"Ummm….I hate to burst your bubble or anything but…I've never heard of you." Ren said nervously. Everyone just simply stared at him as if he had grown a second head.

An hour later, Team 7 was prepared to leave Konoha to begin their mission of escorting Tazuna back to his native country. Naruto was jubilant at the idea.

"ALL RIGHT! ROAD TRIP!!"

"What are you babbling about?" Sakura reprimanded, seeing as how Naruto was too lax about this mission. This obviously didn't slow the boy down since he continued to be ecstatic about traveling, exclaiming how he never once set foot outside of Konoha. This made Tazuna uneasy and skeptical.

"Am I really expected to place my life in the hands of this fool?"

"There's no call for concern. I'm an elite ninja, and I'll be along, too…" Kakashi said almost exasperatedly. Naruto, on the other hand, was becoming annoyed with the constant insults from Tazuna and decided that enough was enough.

"Listen, you old geezer! You don't mess with ninja. Ever. Especially not a really good one like me!" After seeing the he had Tazuna's attention, Naruto continued.

"I am the cream of the elite. In fact, one day I'm gonna be the next Lord Hokage! So remember my name. It's Uzumaki Naruto."

This ultimatum didn't affect Tazuna at all. All he did was take another swig from his handy bottle of Sake.

"Hokage, eh? The lord of your village? The best there is? I don't think someone like you has it in him." Tazuna retorted nonchalantly. This obviously had an adverse affect to Naruto since his dream was to become Hokage.

"WELL, YOU'RE OLD AND STUPID! I am doing all the right things, and I'm doing them fast. And when I become Hokage, you're gonna wish you were a lot more respectful to me right now!!!"

Tazuna only looked at Naruto for a few seconds, but those few seconds told a story that only the quick-witted ones could catch.

"Respect you? I don't think so." Tazuna calmly retaliated, pausing to take another swig, "Not even if you did become Hokage."

Obviously, Naruto was completely unprepared for that comeback and could only grit his teeth in anger and try holding back on killing the old man in front of him. Unfortunately, he failed.

"YOU ARE DEAD!!!"

"I SAID no, you little dunce." Kakashi once again intervened. Ren could only laugh at their antics while Sakura and Sasuke only quietly observed from the side. Up in the near-by tree tops, unbeknownst to them, 2 figures stood hiding in the trees, quietly observing them.

A few more hours into the day and after much traveling found the group walking down a dirt path surround by various shrubs and the like. Silence and nervousness ate away at Sakura, who had one thought bothering her the whole long while.

"Um, Mr. Tazuna…?"

"What now?" Tazuna said exasperatedly.

"You come from the land of the Waves, right?"

"What of it?"

Sakura then turned to Kakashi, who was probably more capable of answering her question at present.

"Um….Kakashi-sensei…Are there ninja in that country too?" Sakura asked timidly.

"No. Not in the land of the Waves. But, as a general rule, even with all the differences that exist in local customs and cultures most other lands have their own hidden village where a ninja clan resides." After that was said, Kakashi then continued his lecture by pulling out his patented "Kakashi-Sensei's Big Scroll of Shinobi: The Five Principal Shinobi Territories." Everyone listened half-heartedly for a while until it came to an end.

"Realy? Lord Hokage is SO amazing!" Sakura exclaimed girlishly. Of course, her Inner Sakura was thinking quite differently in her head.

'I don't see anything that great about the old fart who's always lecturing us!'

The boys thought the same thing in their own heads, Axel included.

"You obviously don't think so." Kakashi said suddenly, very nonchalantly. This caught the 4 by surprise. Perhaps Kakashi has mind reading powers, ne?

"There's nothing to worry about. You won't face any duels with Ninja from other clans while you're handling C level duties."

"So I don't have to worry about encountering any foreign shinobi…?" Sakura asked, gaining more confidence.

"Of course not!" Kakashi reassured her with a laugh and pat on her head.

Tazuna, who had been listening to their conversation, looked nervous and guilty only for a few seconds before covering it up with his normal gruff visage. However, this moment of wavering did not go unnoticed by the Uchiha survivors. They continued their journey in this manner, passing by a puddle which seemed to have caught Kakashi's attention but then continued on his way with his students and client. As soon as Kakashi had turned his back, a figure silently grew out of the puddle Kakashi was observing. What was supposedly one though were really 2 people hidden within one cloak, one upon the other's back. The one on the back flew out over Kakashi's head, all the while trailing a sort of Shuriken-Chain weapon from a demon-claw like device worn like a glove. This chain was connected to the 2 Ninja assassins' right arms. With a flick of the wrist, the Shuriken-Chain whipped around and trapped Kakashi quickly within its sharp coils, utterly catching everyone by surprise.

"One little piggy." Was all the assassins said when they yanked their weapons in opposite directions, resulting in the immediate slaughter of Kakashi.

The shock of seeing their Jonin-sensei being killed and with such ease put everyone in a momentary state of shock. Sakura screamed in fright while Naruto yelled out in panic.

"K…KAKASHI-SENSEI!!!"

No sooner had this been said that the 2 assassins appeared right behind Naruto, whispering in their masks that distorted their voices into a menacing sound.

"Two little piggies…" And so the chain, still dripping Kakashi's blood flew to trap Naruto the same way it did Kakashi.

Before it could do such a thing, Sasuke jumped forward into the air, taking out a kunai and a shuriken with a small hole in the middle in the process. With ease, he threw the small shuriken first at the chain, using its shape to trap the chain between its blades and the tree trunk it stuck into, thus did he prevent the chain from ensnaring Naruto. Surmising that the weapon was still dangerous, Sasuke threw his kunai straight into the middle of the small shuriken, which got stuck into the tree trunk as well, trapping the chain along with the assassins since it was attacked to the devices equipped upon their hands. Sasuke landed upon the outstretched arms of the assassins and with an unsatisfied grunt, performed a kick similar to that of a bucking horse into the faces of the assassins. Naruto could only stare in awe. The assassins, with rage in their eyes yet still remembering their mission, detached the chain connected to their demon claws with a hidden mechanism and quickly separated. The one who had jumped from the other's back headed to Naruto's blind spot while the other headed towards Tazuna. Both had reached their determined target and were beginning their attack. Naruto screamed in panic while Sakura did her best to think rationally.

'He…! Here it comes!! I've got to do something…I've…got to!!!' And with that thought ringing in her head, she jumped in front of Tazuna; bumping into him at the same time all the while yelling, "STAND BACK, SIR!!" That was until Ren had appeared in front of Sakura, red chakrams drawn with a wild smirk upon his face.

"Hey there! Why don't you have some fun with me!? Homura Kagai (Flame Assault)!!"

The sheer speed of this attack caught the assassin off-guard and as a result suffered a large wound from the chakram only to be nearly burnt to a crisp when the fire pillars came roaring up from the space Ren had charged through. The assassin was defeated. When everything was over, Kakashi had suddenly reappeared with the other assassin in a headlock, apparently saving Naruto from death. The 4 students were relieved to have found Kakashi alive and well while Tazuna was relieved that he was still alive.

"I'm sorry, Naruto. I should have moved to help you sooner before you were injured. It never occurred to me that you would freeze up." Kakashi said apologetically, and then turned towards the rest of the team, praising them on their courage. Naruto slowly got up with a sullen look upon his face.

'I…I couldn't do a thing! But Sasuke…and Ren, who's never been in a real battle before acted like it was no big deal. Both of them didn't even break a sweat. Not only that, they managed to save my life.'

Before Naruto could continue thinking, Sasuke interrupted his thoughts by calling out to him.

"Hey…are you okay, you big chicken?"

This, of course, angered Naruto greatly. Before Naruto could do anything, Kakashi interfered with a warning.

"Naruto! There's no time now for fighting. Their claws are poisoned. We have to clean the wound as soon as possible," this obviously caught Naruto's attention since his anger quickly dissipated, "If we cut it open more deeply, the blood flow will wash the poison away. For now, keep as still as possible, so the poison doesn't spread." Kakashi then turned his attention to Tazuna.

"Mr. Tazuna."

"Wha…What is it!?" Tazuna answered with slight panic in his voice.

"I need to speak with you." Kakashi replied calmly.

After stripping the assassins of their weapons, they tied them to a tree and Kakashi began to assess the situation to the group.

"Our attackers appeared to be Chunin level ninja of the Kirigakure clan--Mist ninjas. They are shinobi renowned for their willingness to fight on until their goal is achieved, even at the cost of their own lives. Obviously, they were watching and waiting for us. The sun is out, and it hasn't rained for several days so there shouldn't have been any puddles on the ground."

Tazuna was still confused and questioned Kakashi's tactics.

"If you knew all that, why did you even let those creeps attack you?"

"I could have killed them at any time but…I wanted to find out who their real target was." Kakashi answered.

Tazuna, being normal and not having any experience in Ninja combat and strategies, remained confused.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Were you really the one they were after? Or was it one of us ninja? There has been no word of any shinobi seeking to take your life. The request that was relayed to Lord Hokage was that you have an escort to protect you against any roving bands of thieves and brigands. In any case, it's clear this is more than a "B" rank mission. To protect you from ordinary dangers until you complete the bridge you're currently constructing would be a simple thing."

Tazuna, seeing as how it was true, could only look down to the ground in shame and guilt.

"But if you expected to be the target of a ninja assault then it is beyond question that this would have been classified—and priced—as a mission for Jonin ninja. You may have had you reasons, but it's never a good idea to conceal the facts when you are asking for help. As it is, this task falls far beyond the boundaries of the job we were assigned." Kakashi finished. Sakura, thinking about Naruto's well-fare and fearing for everyone's lives, intervened at this moment.

"We're not good enough yet to handle something like this…can we quit? We'll need an anesthetic for Naruto's wounds before we can re-open it and drain the poison. Can't we return to the village and have a doctor look at it?"

Kakashi merely stood there, letting out a "Hmmm…", and then falling silent, contemplating this conundrum.

"This is…complicated! Do we go back now so we can make certain Naruto receives medical attention…?"

As this was going on, Naruto's anger slowly grew. Anger at himself for being weak and bringing down the team.

At the same time in a room within a secret bungalow suspended by various ropes and a tree trunk, one ninja sat on a lush couch with a large broad-sword placed across his shoulders. Beside him knelt 3 ninjas and in front of him, a short old man with wild looking hair and wearing generic sunglasses stood arguing with the ninja with the broad-sword, a body-guard by his side.

"FAILED!? WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN, YOU FAILED!?!? IF you weren't supposed to be the best, I wouldn't have paid top dollar for your skills." Yelled the old one.

The ninja upon the couch did not say anything. He merely gripped the sword upon his back, earning a look of fear from the old man. The ninja then swung.

Naruto, in all of his rage and anger, stabbed a kunai into the poisoned hand. All that were present became surprised and feared what he might do next.

'Why am I always so different!? I hate not fitting in!!!!' Naruto thought. Sakura, panicking, tried to stop Naruto from continuing this madness.

"NARUTO, WHAT ARE YOU--!? NO!! STOP THAT!!"

"SERIOUSLY, MAN! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL YOURSELF!?" Ren joined in, also concerned for his team-mate.

Naruto ignored these cries of protest and dug the kunai deeper into his hand.

'By now, I should be really strong!' Memories of his training he performed ever so diligently flashed through his mind, 'But I blew it…even though I've been doing tons of extra training every day on my own, trying to build my skills! I swear no one's ever gonna have to save my life again…I'm not going to be the one who hangs back or freezes up…and I'm not going to be outdone by Sasuke! I swear it …By the pain in my left hand…' Naruto was slowly pulling out the kunai, ignoring the excruciating shocks of pain flowing through his hand.

"With this kunai knife, I promise you, I…will protect the old man. Reporting, fit for duty, sensei!"

As Naruto was making his vow, the ninja within the hidden bungalow had finally begun to speak with his menacing voice.

"Do stop whining. There's nothing to worry about. I, with this Neck-Cleaving Knife will take the hit by myself." As he was talking, he had said sword pointed at the old man in front of him. The bodyguard tried to reconcile with the ninja.

"…Yessir…but are you sure you really want to?"

The old man quickly interrupted with his own form of "reconciliation."

"The enemy has hired ninjas of tremendous skill! And besides…now that the Demon Brothers have tried and failed, they'll be on guard against further attempts."

To this, the ninja only calmly replied with confidence.

"Remember whom you're talking to! I am Momochi Zabuza, the Demon, of the ninjas of Kirigakure!"

Author's Note: Allow me to profusively apologize for the lateness of this update and lack thereof for the Key of Destiny story. I've just been bombarded with many projects and ACTs (basically, a very long and troublesome test taken in timed blocks). Yes, school is very evil. Now then, with that out of the way, there will also be another voting survey on who should be next in this series. The voting will be officially held after one update for Key of Destiny and Flurry of Dancing Flames but based upon earlier votes, there is currently 3 votes for Demyx. On another note, if anyone knows a Japanese-English Dictionary website with Romaji options, I would very well like to be informed since the one I'm using now tends to crash...a lot. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy reading and all reviews are appreciated.


	10. Chapter 9

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts II.

As Naruto had made his vow and finished his posing, Kakashi thought it best to reiterate the importance of what he said earlier.

"Naruto, we needed a free flow of blood to clean the poison from your wound…"

Naruto, at this point, was beginning to feel the effects of having a kunai stabbed in your hand and ripped out again. Naruto, trying to prove his manliness, did quite well in hiding the pain though Kakashi's serious tone made him sweat a little due to anxiety.

"But you've exceeded the need. You could bleed to death. I'm serious." Kakashi said almost too jovially, as if he was just making a mere joke.

Naruto then took this opportune moment to freak out.

"NOOO! NUH-UH! NO WAY! ISN'T GONNA HAPPEN! I'M NOT GONNA DIE LIKE THIS! I DON'T WANNA DIE! SAVE ME!"

Before Naruto could proceed any further into his panic, Kakashi stepped over and ordered Naruto to show him his hand to which Naruto complied hastily.

"What are you, Naruto? Some kind of masochist? Do you get off on pain?" Sakura reprimanded harshly.

Kakashi was beginning to bandage the hand when he noticed one thing was amiss…the wound had mostly healed, looking like a brutal scar. Given time, the wound would completely disappear, leaving no trace of it behind. Naruto, noticing Kakashi's seriousness, grew nervous.

"It's alright, isn't it…? I mean…you know…"

Kakashi, not wanting to worry the boy more, calmly replied saying that he would be fine. Though, the rapidness of Naruto's healing only made Kakashi's assumption certain.

'I should have guessed…it's the power of the Kyubi (Nine-Tailed Fox)!'

As Kakashi was bandaging the hand, despite the lack of use for it other to assure the boy he would be fine; Tazuna decided that the deception had gone long enough.

"Sensei…Sensei-san, sir…" Tazuna slowly began, not knowing how to exactly confess at first. After seeing that he had Kakashi's attention, he felt the will to go forward with his confession further.

"I……have something I need to say……about the request for help I made to your village…"

Kakashi's face then turned serious, seeing as how Tazuna was finally going to tell the true aspects of this mission.

"As you guessed, this job is more dangerous than you and your students were led to believe. There's a real scary man who wants to see me dead."

"A 'Real Scary' man…?" Kakashi questioned.

Ren, being somewhat immature at this moment, snorted in amusement. Everyone turned to look at him.

"Heh Heh, sorry about that. It's just…I never thought I would hear that sort of phrase nowadays. But anyways, who is he?"

Tazuna could only sigh, since the man in question was indeed quite scary.

"You've probably heard of him. He's a billionaire in the field of Marine Transportation. His name is Gato!"

To say Kakashi was surprised would very well sum up what he was feeling right now. He knew full well about the man's reputation but seeing as how said man was hunting Tazuna only deepened the mystery.

"You mean…Gato…of Gato Shipping and Transport? THE Gato? They say he's the richest man in the world!!"

Tazuna took this time to continue.

"That's the one. On the surface, he looks like a legitimate businessman. The truth is he's a ruthless, murdering criminal who employs gangs and teams of Shinobi, and traffics in drugs and contraband. He starts out taking over companies…and ends up running entire countries. He lives by every low and vicious trade known to man."

Ren could only whistle in amazement.

"Hot damn…your right, old man…that is one very scary guy though I gotta wonder…how the hell did you piss him off? You're just a bridge-builder, right? What could Nami no Kuni possibly have that would interest Gato?"

Tazuna merely sighed again, seeing as how he would have to explain how Gato came to power in Nami no Kuni.

"It was just one year ago…that he set his sights on Nami no Kuni…He came under the guise of a business venture. Then the violence began, and in no time at all, he had taken over our entire marine transportation and shipping industry, and we were all under his thumb! Gato now has a stranglehold on all forms of transportation, the lifeblood of an island nation, and a stranglehold on all the wealth…the only thing he has to fear is that which has been underway for some time…the completion of that bridge!"

Sakura, reviewing the situation and the facts, came upon the most likely conclusion to the assassination attempts to Tazuna's life.

"I…see…and as the architect of the bridge and overseer of its construction...you, Tazuna-san, are very much in his way."

Sasuke, looking at the situation more along the mission lines, came upon another conclusion.

"That means…that the ninja who attacked us were working for Gato."

Naruto…well…Naruto……was just confused and tried his best to keep up with the facts that were flying around.

Kakashi still had one other question that needed to be answered.

"But…I still don't understand…if you knew you were the target of a ruthless thug with ninja at his disposal, why didn't you tell us when you asked for our help?"

Tazuna could only sigh again.

"Nami no Kuni isn't a real prosperous land. Even our local lords are poor and I have no money at all. An elite, B-Ranked bodyguard would be a lot more than I could afford…"

For a moment, Kakashi had a look of pity upon his face, as if understanding the risk and how desperate this man was just to complete this bridge that would save his homeland.

"But if you all turn away from me now…then I'm as good as dead."

Kakashi was about to input his opinion until Tazuna suddenly seemed…jovial!?

"BUT OH WELL! THAT'S NOT YOUR CONCERN! You won't be there to see my daughter and ten-year-old grandson cry all day like their hearts are breaking!"

'Oh no…not the family sorrow and vow of eternal hatred gig!' Axel said with an annoyed tone.

"OH! AND YOU WON'T MIND IF MY DAUGHTER VOWS ETERNAL HATRED OF ALL THE NINJA OF YOUR VILLAGE AS SHE LIVES HER LIFE ALONE! HECK! WELL, IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT!"

'Way to pour on the guilt there, old man…' Ren thought with equal annoyance in his tone.

Everyone else was also thinking along the same lines as Ren, seeing as how Tazuna just HAD to play the Guilt-Trip card. Kakashi, trying to seem jovial, reassured Tazuna.

"Well…I suppose it can't be helped. We'll continue to protect you, at least until you return to your country!"

Of course, Tazuna, seeing as how this old trick seemed to work all the time, could only think of one thing.

'Gotcha!'

A few hours of traveling by foot would later find the group crossing a great body of water by boat. A heavy fog surrounded them, blocking everyone's vision. Sakura made a comment about how thick the fog was to which no one replied to, only silent agreeing. The boatman who was guiding them began to say that they would be able to see the bridge which would signify their approach to Nami no Kuni. As the bridge came into view, everyone could only stare in awe. Though the bridge was still incomplete, the sheer size and length of it was not one to take lightly.

"Whoa! It's Huuuge!" Naruto exclaimed, unable to keep his excitement in check.

The boatman, who was tense, immediately reprimanded Naruto.

"Hey! Keep it down! This mist'll keep us hidden. But from this point on, we have to turn off our engines and row. We'd be screwed if Gato caught us."

Naruto immediately slapped two hands over his mouth though it be after the fact. Wisely enough, everyone else remained quiet as well. Soon another smaller bridge could be seen thought its purpose served more as a waterway rather than a path taken by foot.

"We'll be there soon. Tazuna-san…so far it looks like we've been overlooked. Just to be on the safe side we'll take in inland waterway through town to a point where we can make landfall under the cover of mangroves."

"Arigatou." Tazuna replied gratefully.

And as the boatman had said, they did use the waterway to get into town but what they saw was most beautiful. Though the town was dilapidated looking and built along planks and small port, the mangroves made all of its ugliness just that much smaller. As soon as they had made landfall, Naruto immediately ran off the boat and a few feet away to see the town while everyone else was slowly getting off. The boatman was revving up the motor attached to his boat, preparing to leave but not before saying some parting words to Tazuna.

"This is as far as I go. Take care of yourself."

"Thanks for taking such a risk. I shouldn't have asked it."

And with that, the boatman had left, leaving the group upon the planks that made their landfall. Tazuna, taking on another jovial mood, turned towards the group.

"Ok! Now if I can just make it home in one piece…"

"Hai, hai." Kakashi replied exasperatedly. Of course, being the Jonin-level Shinobi he is, he dreaded what would come next in his mind.

'There's bound to be another attack…and next time, they won't send Chunin. We'll probably face upper level Shinobi. Haaah…could this be any worse?'

And Kakashi's thoughts would be answered by one Naruto Uzumaki. As he was walking, he caught sight of his nemesis Sasuke Uchiha walking along side him. He then turned around to find Ren and Sakura have a nice conversation, both of them laughing as if it were naught but an afternoon walk. Talk about adding salt to an old wound…this only got Naruto fired up.

'This is it! I'm not going to let them make me look bad again!'

He then stopped to look around the area. After doing so for a few moments, he immediately took out two shuriken.

"OVER THERE!!" And with that, he threw his two shuriken towards some bushes nearby with great force. At the same time, he scared the group out of their wits, save Sasuke. A silence fell over the group expecting something else to happen but finding nothing. Naruto, trying to cover up for his blunder, struck a pose.

"I…uh, guess it was only a mouse."

This obviously didn't sit well with his teammates since they were scared witless save Sasuke. Sakura made her thoughts immediately known.

"WHAT MOUSE!? ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND!? THERE WAS NOTHING THERE, YOU MORON!!"

Kakashi made it a point to point out the obvious danger concerning shuriken.

"Please…Please don't play around with your shuriken. They can be just a teensy bit dangerous!"

Ren only breathed in and out, trying to regain his breath.

"I think that was ten years of my life right there…"

Tazuna, on the other hand, was beyond furious.

"HEY! MIDGET!! DON'T GO SCARING US! STOP MESSING WITH OUR HEADS!"

Yet all of these comments went unheard as Naruto continued searching for the imaginary enemy hiding in the bushes. The opportunity arose when the sound of rustling in another nearby bush could be heard. This Kakashi homed in one with senses most astute. Naruto caught on as well but…not quite like Kakashi.

"THIS TIME! OVER THERE!" And with that, threw one shuriken towards the bushes from which the sound originated from.

Again, this did not sit well with his teammates, most of all Sakura who had opted to punch Naruto in the back of the head.

"I TOLD YOU TO QUIT IT!"

"OWW!! I swear--! There was someone in there! After us!"

"You are SUCH a liar!"

Kakashi merely ignored their argument and went over to the bushes to investigate. Upon arriving, he found…A DEAD RABBIT!!!! Actually no, the shuriken just barely missed the rabbit's head by a mere inch. Of course, the shock with facing death so close to one's head scared the rabbit so much that it fainted and was foaming at the mouth. Ren, trying to make light the situation, joked at Naruto's handiwork.

"Hey Naruto…I think you might have killed it."

Of course, Sakura didn't see this as a joke and just yelled at Naruto, reprimanding his recklessness.

"NARUTO! LOOK WHAT YOU DID!"

Naruto immediately scooped up the rabbit in his arms, trying to bring life back into the bunny that had fainted.

"It was an accident. Snap out of it, bunny! Please!"

Tazuna was also equally annoyed seeing as how his life was one the line and he had a blonde, overly-excitable Shinobi to protect him.

"Just a rabbit!?"

As this was going on, Kakashi was assessing the facts and the situation. The "rabbit" that Naruto held in his arms was in reality a snow hare and if anyone here is in biology or just picks up random facts, than one would know that the color of their pelts change in tune with the seasons. Seeing as how it was spring, the pelt of the snow hare should have been brown but instead it was white, the pelt used for winter. In Kakashi's mind, it only meant one thing…the snow hare was a decoy set out to distract them while the attack would be coming out from another direction.

'This is it!'

Amongst the branches of a nearby tree, Momochi Zabuza, Demon of Kirigakure, laid hidden, observing the potential threat of the group standing before him.

'From what I see, this group is not equal in skill to the Youkai Doubou (Demon Brothers). Yet, their leader is a Shinobi of Konohagakure—and not just any Shinobi! It's Kakashi the Kagami (Mirror) Shinobi-Kakashi of the Sharingan (Mirror-Wheel) Eye!'

And with anticipation running through his veins, he began to make his move. Kakashi, noticing that ever slight movement, immediately yelled out an order to everyone.

"EVERYONE TAKE COVER!!"

No sooner had he said that, a huge sword flew towards the group with the intent of slicing all of them in half. Kakashi and Ren managed to duck in time while Sakura tackled Naruto down and Sasuke tackled Tazuna down to save them from certain death. The sword then struck a tree and stuck out from its trunk and immediately following its sudden stop Momochi Zabuza stood upon its handle. It was then that everyone began to stand up to regain their bearings, Kakashi being the first.

'That looks like…'

"Well well…if it isn't Momochi Zabuza, the kid who ran off and left Kirigakure."

Naruto on the other hand had nothing more than glory upon his mind while the others were tense as to their new enemy.

'Yess! It's here! My big chance! This time neither Sasuke or Ren are gonna out do me! Ready…Steady…GO!'

No sooner had Naruto had taken a step, Kakashi's hand immediately shot out to prevent him from going any further.

"Don't interfere. Give me room. This one is on a different plane from our previous opponents."

'And if I have to face him, it had better be…' Kakashi slowly moved his left hand towards his Konohagakure Hitai-Ate (Head-band).

"…like this…this may be a little rough."

But before Kakashi could finish moving his headband, Zabuza spoke to him with his menacing voice.

"Kakashi of the Sharingan Eye, I presume? If it wouldn't be too much trouble…could you surrender the old man?"

As he said this, Naruto and Sakura were confused as to what Zabuza was talking about. Sasuke and Ren, though, didn't know what to make of it.

'The Sharingan!?'

Kakashi merely ignored Zabuza's demand and gave his four students new orders.

"Assume the Manji battle formation! Protect Tazuna-san. All of you stay out of the fight. This is the kind of teamwork this situation demands. And now…Zabuza…" Kakashi moved his headband further up and wore it regularly to reveal that which he hid, an eye that was blood red in color with a black ring and black symbols placed in a triangular formation. This was the Sharingan.

Naruto, who had surprisingly remained quiet throughout this ordeal, could only stare at the one eye and wonder. Zabuza then spoke again in respectful sort of tone.

"Ahh…to face the legendary Sharingan eye so early in our acquaintance…This IS an honor."

Naruto decided that all this beating around the bush was enough and wanted some questions answered.

"You keep calling it a Sharingan eye…what the hell is it!?"

Sasuke began to explain since he had a further understanding of the Sharingan eye than Ren did, since Ren didn't study as much.

"Shinobi who have the Sharingan eye have mastered a form of ocular ninjutsu. It enables them to penetrate and see the reality behind any illusion or spell and to reflect the power of the ninjutsu they penetrate back on those who cast them! A Sharingan eye is one of several types used by the masters…and there's more."

Naruto, Sakura, Ren, and Tazuna were trying to digest all this information as best as they could. Naruto, being the more vocal one, asked one more question.

"Like what?"

Instead of Sasuke though, Zabuza chose to answer this one, impressed with Sasuke's knowledge of the Sharingan.

"Heh-heh…exactly. There is indeed more. Most formidable of all is the acuity with which the Sharingan can discern and then duplicate its opponent's greatest skill. When I was an assassin for Kirigakure, I possessed the usual bingo book-a kind of who's who of our enemies. It had quite the extensive write-up on you including a mention of your impressive record…the man who had penetrated and copied over a thousand different techniques…Kakashi the Kagami Shinobi."

As Zabuza had finished, a tense silence followed, both of them staring each other down with intensity. The four students were digesting this information. Sakura was in awe of Kakashi's impressive reputation though felt a little doubt.

'But he's…Kakashi-sensei is just…he and old man Hokage are only…are they that amazing?"

Naruto was more vocal than Sakura in his new found awe and respect for Kakashi but Sasuke and Ren now had more reason to be suspicious. The Sharingan is a ninjutsu only unique to that of the Uchiha clan and only a small number at that. If that were true, how did Kakashi come into possession of the Sharingan eye? Before Ren and Sasuke could finish such thoughts, Zabuza spoke again, beginning to crouch on the sword handle.

"Enough. Pleasant as this conversation has been the time for talk is over. I'm on a very tight schedule to polish off the old man."

At this threat, all four students immediately formed the Manji battle formation yet this did not seem to bother Zabuza at all.

"But…Kakashi…it looks like…I'm going to have to kill you first."

And with that, Zabuza kicked off the trunk of the tree with his sword and disappeared. He immediately reappeared in the nearby lake and stood upon its surface. Naruto and Sakura, who had never seen such a thing before, could not believe their eyes.

"Over there!!"

"Is he…walking on water!?"

Ren became nervous at the thought of fighting Zabuza for one obvious reason.

'Dammnit…why does it have to be a guy who can manipulate water? Don't people know that fire can't stand up to water!?'

The mist that surrounded them became thicker and thicker, soon to become thick enough to block visibility.

"The finest of the Shinobi arts…Kirigakure no Jutsu (Hiding-in-the-Mist)."

And within these mists did Zabuza disappear, leaving nothing but a leaf in the place where he once stood. This thoroughly struck fear in the four students and Tazuna seeing a Shinobi of such high caliber.

"HE'S GONE!!!"

Kakashi gave them an urgent warning before the mist could envelope them all fully.

"He will come after me first. Momochi Zabuza of the Kirigakure Assassin Corps is a famous master of the art of Silent Killing. Letting your guard down around him buys a direct trip to heaven. I haven't necessarily mastered every aspect of the Sharingan eye so all of you stay on your toe!"

Out of fear and necessity, all four students nodded. The mist moved as if it were alive and began to envelope them in its wispy tendrils. Naruto, thoroughly confused as to the mist's sudden appearance and mobility, panicked somewhat.

"What's with all of this fog!?"

But before the answer to such a question could be asked, Zabuza's voice echoed from out of nowhere, mocking their inexperience and taking relish in their fear.

"_There are eight targets_"

"What!? Wha…what was that!?" Sakura panicked as well, the sudden voice catching her off-guard. The voice continued speaking.

"_Throat, spinal column, lungs, liver, the jugular vein, the subclavian artery, kidney, heart…so many choices, what vital, vulnerable place shall I choose?_"

Silence then reigned for but a moment until Kakashi performed a series of hand-seals faster than the eye can see. It was in that same moment that a wave of malice and blood-lust swept in, striking an indescribable fear into the four students who had yet to experience such a thing. Surprisingly enough, Sasuke began to crack under the pressure.

'This terrible blood-thirst…! If I draw his attention by even blinking, he'll kill me! I can feel it! I can't stay like this for long! I'm going to lose it. A master Shinobi, determined to make a kill...knowing my life is in his hands……I hate it! You start wanting to die, just to end the suspense…'

Ren, feeling his cousin's unease and also somewhat cracking under the pressure, did the only thing he could do, feeble as it maybe.

"Homura Gokusha (Flame Prison)!"

A circular wall of flame appeared around the four students and Tazuna as they prepared for Zabuza's attack. Unfortunately, Ren's focus was completely absent as the flames were becoming wild and could not form the shape needed to become a proper wall.

"Sasuke. Ren. Calm down. Even if he gets me, I'll still protect you. I'll never let my comrades die!!!"

Though Kakashi was speaking towards Ren and Sasuke, this reassurance was meant for all of them and as a result, all calmed down a little to regain their focus. The flames became calmer and took the form of the wall needed to protect them.

"_I wouldn't bet on it_…"

Despite their efforts, Zabuza somehow managed to get past them and ended up right in the middle of their formation, poised to strike.

"Game Over."

Zabuza took hold of his sword and begun to swing it in an effort to kill all five of them in one fell swoop. But before he could fully start the swing, Kakashi dashed through the flames with a stab to Zabuza's stomach with a kunai, pushing Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura away at the same time. Tazuna, in a panic, stumbled back which resulted in him bumping into Ren. With his focus disturbed once again and so suddenly, the flames that surround them were extinguished. Time seemed to hold still for just a moment but Zabuza was not bleeding blood…he was bleeding water. Behind Kakashi, a silhouette could be seen and when that silhouette moved to strike, it was Zabuza. Naruto, from his position, saw the attack coming and warned Kakashi.

"SENSEI!! BEHIND YOU!!"

But it was too late, Zabuza's sword sliced clean through Kakashi's body, separating the upper body from his lower body. Sakura screamed as the bloody deed had been done. Yet like the Zabuza before, there was no blood but rather water instead. The body that was Kakashi's then dissolved into water, leaving Zabuza bewildered.

'A Mizu Bunshin (Water clone)!? He was able to copy me in this mist?'

A hand with a kunai appeared from behind Zabuza, leaving the edge dangerously close to Zabuza's neck.

"Don't move… Game Over."

This mocking voice came from Kakashi, who was indeed fine and now had the upper hand on Zabuza. All four students looked on with awe as to Kakashi's skill and relief that he was still alive. Yet, this did not seem to disturb Zabuza in the least. He merely laughed it off.

"Heh heh heh heh…you think it's over? You just don't get it…it will take a lot more than mimicking me like an ape…a lot more. But you are good! In that short time, you duplicated my Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu and by making your doppelganger say something you'd have said yourself, you ensured all my attention would be focused on it while you yourself used the Kirigakure no Jutsu, watching my every move!"

Ren could only look on with awe at Zabuza's analytical abilities.

'He was able to process and discern that much movement in that short amount of time!? This is not looking good. Fire doesn't work because he'll just douse the flames with a water jutsu…what now!?'

'Stay calm, kid. We still have the Nobodies to rely on…but I have to admit, this guy is pretty good.'

'Axel!? Where the hell have you been this entire time!?'

'Focus, kid! Something's about to happen!'

And sure enough, something did happen. The Zabuza that had been in front of Kakashi dissolved into water, catching him off-guard. The real Zabuza was behind Kakashi as he had been before and this time swung his sword with his monstrous strength, intending to repeat the end Kakashi's clone had met earlier. Kakashi barely managed to dodge by ducking down to the ground, avoiding his death but Zabuza saw this coming. After he had swung the sword, the sword became stuck on the ground behind him. Using the sword as an anchor, he continued with spinning from his earlier attack to perform a rolling sobat kick. The centrifugal force along with Zabuza's strength made the kick so strong that Kakashi flew all the way towards the lake several feet away. With enough breathing room, Zabuza was about to go finish Kakashi off with his sword but found his path obstructed by caltrops, which Kakashi managed to drop as he flew towards the lake. This merely served to irritate Zabuza.

"Foolishness!" And disappeared again soon after.

The four students were unable to take action as Zabuza's strength was unlike anything they have seen before. Kakashi had just resurfaced from the water but found something strange about it.

'This water…why is it so heavy…?'

But Zabuza took advantage of Kakashi's moment of confusion and swooped down upon him.

"Hah! Gullible fool! Suirou no Jutsu (Water Prison)!"

At that moment, the water surrounding Kakashi rose up around him and encased him in a sphere of water. Kakashi could do nothing as he floated within the water, helpless.

'I thought I could go underwater and regroup, but it was a tactical error!!'

Zabuza only laughed at Kakashi's helplessness and how easy it was to trap that famed Jonin of Konohagakure.

"Heh-heh-heh…that prison is inescapable. You're trapped. You running around free makes it too hard for me to do my job. I'll finish you later…after I've dealt with all the others…Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu!"

A water clone formed from the lake near the shore, striking fear into the four students and client left to die at the hands of the famed Youkai (Demon) of Kirigakure.

"Heh-heh-heh…little Shinobi wannabe. Trying so hard to fit in, you even wear a Hitai-Ate headband. But a true ninja is one who has crossed and recrossed the barrier between the lands of the living and the dead. Clothes don't make a Shinobi. You need skills good enough to rate a listing in my bingo book of enemies before you deserve to be called Shinobi. We don't call your kind "Shinobi." We call them…"

The Zabuza clone had disappeared within the mists again, further heightening the fear and suspense as to who he might attack next. Naruto, who was unfortunately closer and clearly panicking, was met with rolling sobat kick to his face, losing his Hitai-Ate headband in the process. Sakura screamed for fear of Naruto's life. The clone then stamped his foot upon the headband, grinding it with its foot in a mocking way before finishing what he was saying before.

"…BRATS."

Kakashi, within that prison of water, made one last order to his subordinates.

"Everyone, listen! Take Tazuna-san and go!!! It's a fight you can't win!!! If he wants to hold me in this water prison, he can't leave this place. If his Mizu Bunshin gets more than a certain distance away from his real body, he loses control of it. So get out of here!"

Running was indeed in Naruto's mind. Faced with such power and murderous intent, he panicked.

'…He's an elite Shinobi…a real elite Shinobi…I have to get away. I can't just lie here……there's no doubt about it!! I'll die if I don't. He'll kill me!'

Naruto made his move to turn and run but he stopped when he felt a sudden pain. He looked down to see where the pain had originated from…his left hand. It was that very same hand that he had made a vow upon to protect Tazuna until the very end. As he thought this, memories of Sasuke mocking him earlier before, memories from his academy days and the first training exercise, and most importantly, his vow to become Hokage sprang up in his mind. He then turned around with a desperate look in his eye, which was quickly followed by that of determined rage.

'Gotta keep that in mind. I'm a Shinobi now…I swore I'd never freeze up or run away again…and I won't…!'

He then charged at Zabuza all the while sounding his battle cry. Kakashi tried to deter Naruto from his path but to no avail.

"Stop, you fool!"

Sasuke took notice of something different from Naruto's posture of attack, seeing how it was lower than usual. Sakura was still concerned about Naruto's safety to take notice.

"Naruto!! What are you thinking!?"

All of this merely amused Zabuza, seeing how reckless this one boy was.

"Hah! Imbecile…"

Zabuza then retaliated by punching Naruto viciously in the head, sending him flying further back all the way towards his teammates and Tazuna. Sakura, still concerned, reprimanded Naruto for his foolhardiness.

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, TACKLING HIM BY YOURSELF!? YOU THINK YOU'RE SO COOL, BUT GENIN LIKE US CAN'T…"

Before Sakura could finish, he ever-observant eye caught something within Naruto's hand. It was his Konohagakure Hitai-Ate. Naruto slowly and shakily got up from the blow but managed to stand up, facing Zabuza.

"Hey…you…what's life like without eyebrows, freak?"

This obviously touched a sensitive spot for Zabuza took on a look of anger and a slight vein started to bulge upon his head.

"Got a new listing for your bingo book right here!! A guy who is going to be the next Lord Hokage of Konohagakure…"

Naruto then took this time to stand upright and put his Konohagakure Hitai-Ate back to its rightful place.

"Uzumaki Naruto! Konohagakure-school Shinobi!"

Naruto had proven many times before to be the stereotypical cackling crow amongst a flock of cranes but now…Naruto had become something completely different. Now this crow would become like that of Yatagarasu and fly towards his destiny upon shining wings.

"Everybody! Listen up. There's something I want to tell you!"

The remaining three looked at Naruto, bewildered as to what he could possibly tell them now. Ren chose to speak up first.

"What is it?"

"I have a plan." Naruto replied simply.

Sasuke took on a smooth smirk while his more excitable cousin took on his trade-mark wild smirk.

"Is that right? Well now, aren't I feeling fired up, ne?"

As Ren had said this, tendrils of darkness and flames snaked up his body and along his arms, finally converging to form the red chakrams that was his weapon of choice.

"Hmph…so, it's time for some team-work?"

Sasuke slowly took out a kunai. Sakura, feeling that she should contribute too and inspired by the courage everyone was showing, stood along with the others, kunai also drawn.

"If you boys are in, count me in too!"

Everyone looked a bit surprised at first, seeing as how they would have expected her to stand back but this was quickly quelled by a feeling of triumph, since they stood united against Zabuza. Naruto turned back to Zabuza, smirking as well.

"OK! TIME FOR US TO ROCK N' ROLL!"

* * *

Author's Note: Right then, I thought it best to let everyone know that I tried to update last night but unfortunately the internet connection died and I was struck by a wave of tiredness as well. Typing 10+ pages (According to Microsoft Word) of fanfiction isn't easy. Also, concerning the character survey, since Demyx is the undisputed winner of the survey on whose next in this series, it has also resulted in the event of ANOTHER survey. Yes, I realize that some of the reviewers out there are eager but I promise to do my best on Demyx's story should the survey be a success. Now then, here be the survey... 

Should Demyx be paired with either Haku, Ino, or Temari?

Should it be Haku, shall I make Haku a girl or remain a boy? (Mind you, if voted boy, it will be my first Yaoi fanfic)

That is all. Thank you for reading and I hope you all enjoy reading this fanfic (Reviews are appreciated as well and feel free to ask any quesitons at all, I shall do my best to answer them).


	11. Chapter 10

True Memories: Flurry of Dancing Flames

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts II

* * *

Zabuza remained unshaken at this new show of confidence and merely laughed it off as fool-hardiness.

"Heh heh…you're very sure of yourself. But do you really think you stand a chance against me?"

"Hell yeah, ya eye-browless freak!" Ren yelled with his wild smirk in place.

Sakura and Sasuke could only give a small laugh at the suddenness of the comment which only served to infuriate Zabuza. But he still kept his cool and focused his anger into a glare unto the ignorant insolence of the opponents before him. Kakashi, sensing the anger and blood-lust, did the only thing he could to warn them.

"What's the matter with you!? I told you to run! It's over…it was over the second he caught me! You have to do your duty, keep that in mind! We're here to protect Tazuna-san!"

"Tch, I hardly think the guy is going to give us the opportunity to run away so either way, we're all damned well screwed, I think."

"Intelligent yet crude as always, Ren. Didn't auntie or uncle ever do something about that?"

"Oh come on! My dad encouraged it! Though…my mother had otherwise to say…but whatever, how about it, old man? Run away or stand and fight?"

The four then focused their attention on Tazuna, face hidden from the straw hat he was wearing.

"…What? Let's face facts. The truth is, I got us into this mess by lying…I've had a real long life, and it would be wrong to let you four kids get yourselves killed trying to save me. So you go ahead, give this fight everything you've got."

The four kids, as Tazuna eloquently put it, merely grinned.

"Well, there you have it, Kakashi-sensei. Our client has given us permission to go at it full-speed." Sakura said cheekily.

The rage that was apparent on Zabuza's face disappeared and was replaced by that of a cold-blooded demon.

"Apparently you don't care whether you live to get any older! Playing at being a ninja like it's a child's game…I, however, by the time I was your age had already dyed these hands in my enemies' blood…"

A slight wave of blood-lust emanated from him, causing all four students and Tazuna to shiver in fear. Despite this fear, Ren was trying to formulate a plan to counteract the opponent's control of water jutsus.

"_Kuso…I got a really bad feeling about this…maybe I could…_"

Before Ren could finish his thought, the conversation had taken a turn to something far more sinister. Something to which even Kakashi couldn't stomach.

"Long ago, in Kirigakure-also known as "The Village of the Bloody Mist", the final step toward becoming a full-fledged shinobi was the most inhumanly difficult test imaginable."

"So…you've heard about our little graduation exercise."

The four students remained oblivious as to what was going on and what this "graduation exercise" was. Naruto's curiosity winning over his apprehension, wanted to find out what.

"Wh-What 'graduation exercise'?"

Zabuza laughed at his innocence. A laugh so cold and cruel that it would've frozen the very waters around him.

"It's a kind of 'killing spree'…among classmates."

Shock…fear…disbelief…these were the emotions that hung about the air as the information was laid out in the open and given to be soaked in and understood. Kakashi, remaining calm yet still disturbed, continued.

"Students who'd been friends, eating from the same dish, as undergrads were divided into pairs who were forced to fight against each other…to the death. Think of it. Comrades who had trained together, lived together, shared each other's every hope and dream…"

As everyone was soaking this information in, the only thing they could do was continue staring in disbelief. Ren shook with anger, threatening to explode with infernal rage. It was all Sakura could do to keep him calm, yet she too found it hard to remain in such a state for she not only pitied but felt sad for those who had to go through such an ordeal.

"Ten years ago, the elders of Kirigakure were forced to enact a sweeping reform of their barbaric graduation ritual because of the appearance, during the previous year, of a human fiend that made reform essential."

"_A human fiend…?_" Was Sakura's thought upon this statement before voicing her thoughts in the form of questions.

"What kind of reform? What are you talking about? What did the fiend you're talking about do?"

Silence reigned in the area as those questions hung in the air, before they were swept away with Kakashi's answer.

"Without a moment's hesitation, without any hint of a qualm, a boy who hadn't even qualified yet as a ninja butchered over a hundred members of that year's graduating class."

Within the dark recesses of Zabuza's mind, the memory of that year flashed into his mind. There he was, no older than the four that stood before him, sitting upright in the fetal position covered in blood surrounded by the carnage that was his bloody deed. Boys and girls with looks of pain and terror upon their faces, fallen kunai and shuriken, a horrific scene of hell unto which the Demon was born.

"Ah, yes. Good times…I used to have such fun." His look of reminiscence was then replaced by that of sadistic happiness. Happiness only achieved through long years of slaughter until the soul became Death's lover.

The face was that of a reminiscent smile but the eyes were that of blood-lust, to which had focused upon the hapless Genin before him. The fear that they felt made them stop for a few seconds but it was all Zabuza needed as he slammed his elbow into Sasuke's abdomen. Sasuke would've gone flying had Zabuza not followed-up with a second punch like a hammer, striking Sasuke in the stomach again down into the ground. Two intense blows to the same spot was all Sasuke's body could handle as he coughed up blood.

"SASUKE!"

"YOU BASTARD!!"

Ren flew into a rage with chakrams flaming, not caring whether or not the flames would be doused. But before Ren could swing out at Zabuza, he had taken his won, much faster, swing at the weaker Genin. It was all Ren could do to bring up his chakrams in time to block the blow only to have his chakrams break. Zabuza then followed it up with a sobat kick, sending Ren skidding along the ground, stopping a few feet away to the right of Tazuna and Sakura.

"Hah! Is that the best you can do? Well, no matter…it's time for this little brat to die first."

Zabuza raised the sword up to swing down and cut Sasuke's body in half before Naruto intervened as well.

"Kage-Bunshin No Jutsu!!!"

A legion of Naruto's had appeared around Zabuza in a cloud of smoke. With his attention focused on the clones, Sasuke took the chance to steady himself and try standing.

"So…doppelgangers, eh? And quite a lot of them…"

Ren was also beginning to recover form the blow dealt to him in time to see all the clones jump at Zabuza with kunai drawn and a battle cry. All of the Naruto's had formed a dome shaped mass for a moment, giving the sense that the deed was done. Yet Zabuza's strength was far greater as he too let out a battle cry, sword blurring in the air, as all the clones were sent flying.

As the other Naruto's disappeared in clouds of smoke, one of them unfastened the bag from his shoulder and dug his hand into it.

'_This is the last thing left that might work…_'

"SASUKE!!!"

Naruto then threw a thin black object at Sasuke. On the end was a circular handle to handle the weapon. Sasuke dove backwards for the weapon, rolling far enough away to get out of range of Zabuza's blade. As Sasuke caught it, he then caught onto the plan.

'_So that's what Naruto's got in mind…excellent. Lots better than I expected._'

From the roll Sasuke up righted himself and released the lock that released four blades, making the weapon look like that of a windmill. Sasuke began focusing his chakra before preparing to throw. Ren had re-summoned his chakrams, preparing to throw his weapons as well.

"Kage no Kazaguruma (Windmill of Shadows)!!"

"Hosetsudanki (Fire Cutter)!!"

Sasuke leaped in the air; Ren's chakrams went ablaze, enhanced with chakra and the power of darkness; and both threw with all their might. Zabuza merely scoffed at this form of attack.

"Shuriken are useless against me!"

Yet, the Fuuma shuriken and flaming chakrams flew past him, aiming for the Zabuza that had held Kakashi captive within the water orb that was his prison.

"At least this time you've had the sense to zero in on my true form…AMATEUR!!"

The true Zabuza had caught the Fuuma shuriken before it could strike him. As the blade kept spinning, he used it to deflect the other two projectile weapons that were blazing toward him. At the moment of deflecting the last chakram, a second Fuuma shuriken popped out below the shuriken Zabuza had caught and began making its progress towards him.

"A second shuriken in the shadow of the first…!"

For just a few moments, it would seem that the attack would connect but Zabuza had managed to dodge the shuriken by jumping, letting the shuriken fly harmlessly past him.

"STILL an amateur!!"

As Zabuza was gloating upon his small victory, the shuriken that flew past him went up in smoke, to reveal Naruto with a kunai prepared to be thrown. This move completely caught Zabuza off-guard and had surprised the rest.

'_Here goes nothing!_'

Naruto threw the kunai with all the strength that he had. Zabuza, just dropping down from his jump from his earlier dodge, had no choice but to dodge death by releasing his hold on the water prison. However, he was not quick enough as he had suffered a cut from the kunai, blood bleeding from the wound. Wound aside, the humiliation from being tricked by these children was so great that it had enraged him. Naruto being the closest, the mastermind of the plan, and unable to defend himself made him the release of rage that dominated Zabuza.

'_THAT LITTLE RUNT!!!_'

Zabuza was about to throw the Fuuma shuriken when Kakashi had intervened by placing his own hand within the spinning blade's path. The result was a deep cut on Kakashi's right hand and a lot of blood lost. Seeing as how the plan was a success, everyone was relieved and joyous that Kakashi was finally freed yet he still needed time to recover from being imprisoned within an orb of water.

"…Naruto…your scheme was brilliant…you've matured…all of you…"

Naruto, feeling very proud and confident, launched into an explanation on how he came about this idea with his fox-like cunning.

"The Kage Bunshin no Jutsu wasn't meant to take down Zabuza at all. It diverted his attention from me while I transformed myself into the second Fuuma shuriken. Of course, I didn't think that form alone would be enough to permit me to defeat him, but I was at least able to free you from his water prison."

"Hey, Naruto! Don't get yer head full of hot-air, ne? You'll only make yourself look stupid later."

Sakura, who was protecting Tazuna from anything, giggled at Ren's comment, however out of place it was. Of course, this insulted Naruto who became angry despite being in water.

"Hey! If it weren't for my idea, Kakashi-sensei would've never been able to get out so keep your comments to yourself, you porcupine-headed idiot!"

"The name's Ren, dunce! Got it memorized?"

Sasuke calling him dunce was insult enough but to have the second Uchiha call him dunce was the last straw that broke the camel's back. But before he could act on his anger, the two adults began to talk, ignoring the idle chatter between the Genin.

"Heh…so, you made me fly into such a rage that I unraveled the spell holding the water prison together."

"No!! You didn't drop your own spell. It was broken…from without. Just so you know, the same spell won't work on me twice. Your move."

Both Shinobi had jumped away from each other to gain distance. Upon landing, Zabuza performed various katas at lightening speed, ending with the sign of the bird, Tori. Kakashi, Sharingan eye opened wide, mirrored his movements exactly in both speed and time.

"Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu (Water Style: Water Dragon Missle)!!"

From the waters around them, the waters swirled and writhed to form a dragon. With that, the two dragons clashed causing massive waves from the impact. The waves were so great that it had reached the by-standers on the land. Naruto, on the other hand, was trying with all his might to no be swept away by the waves.

When the waves had calmed, Kakashi and Zabuza could be seen. Somehow, only moments after the impact, the two had clashed with kunai going against sword, ending with a lock between the two. Zabuza, though, was showing signs of hesitation.

'_Something…isn't right…_'

Both had broken from the weapon lock and began circling each other, looking for a chance to strike. Both had stopped at the same time and both had repeated the same kata, one arm raised high with a kata set in place and the other at face level in the like-wise form.

'_All of my moves…my gestures...he sees…_'

"…through them all!"

Before Zabuza could even finish his own thought, Kakashi had completed it for him. This thoroughly disturbed Zabuza.

'_What--!? He's reading my mind--!?_'

Kakashi remained calm, only looking at Zabuza with his Sharingan eye half-way closed.

'_Damn him! He's…_'

"…'got that sickeningly evil look in his eye'…right?"

"Feh! You're a pale imitation. I'm the genuine article. No mere copycat stands a chance against me."

As Zabuza had said this, Kakashi copied him, word for word, tone by tone. All Zabuza could do was panic and begin forming the katas necessary for a jutsu that was certain would finish him off.

"YOU MIMIC ME LIKE A PARROT! I'LL CLOSE YOUR BEAK FOR GOOD!"

Yet, before Zabuza could complete his jutsu, something from behind Kakashi stopped him.

'_It's…! ME? But th-that's impossible!! Is this another of his illusions?_'

"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu (Water Style: Giant Waterfall)!!"

As Kakashi had completed this jutsu, the "wheels" within his Sharingan eye spun. From the waters below them, they had swirled and writhed before but no to form a dragon but rather form into a large mass of water which was then rushed towards Zabuza in a spiral mass, practically destroying everything in its path.

'_This is absurd!! Before I could finish my ninjutsu, he used the same technique against me…!_'

The jutsu had slammed him into a tree that miraculously stayed put despite the force though Zabuza could still feel the effects. Kakashi had reappeared on a branch above Zabuza, kunai drawn.

"That's that…"

Zabuza, still reeling from the blow, could only ask that in the realm of impossibility.

"…what…can you see the future…?"

"I forsee…your death."

In some act of Fate or some higher power, two senbon had come flying out of nowhere and had struck Zabuza on two points on the neck. Zabuza fell dead before he even hit the ground. A feminine voice was heard from a tree right in front of Kakashi.

"Heh heh…your prediction came true."

* * *

Author's Note: Please forgive the very lengthy amount of time I took to get this chapter updated. Lately, there's been a lot of school-work which hampers my time to write. Plus, there were complications of internet connection. Though, with this time, I re-played Kingdom Hearts II in order to get a better sense of character from the Organization XIII members. Things seem to be settling down now so I should be able to update more frequently. Until then, read and enjoy (if you wish to review, that would be appreciated). 


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